


Elf

by days_of_storm



Series: The Words Not Spoken [10]
Category: My Engineer (TV)
Genre: Adorable boyfriends being adorable, Baking, Blowjobs, Christmas fic, Christmas traditions, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, First Time, Fluff, M/M, RamKing is the superior ship, Teasing, learning about each other, lots and lots of fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-19
Updated: 2021-01-05
Packaged: 2021-03-10 17:29:18
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 33,278
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28180947
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/days_of_storm/pseuds/days_of_storm
Summary: Ram asks King to spend Christmas with his family and King wants to make sure he knows all about the Veras' Christmas traditions.
Relationships: King/Ram (My Engineer)
Series: The Words Not Spoken [10]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1863481
Comments: 36
Kudos: 94





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Mazarin221b](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mazarin221b/gifts).



> As usual, an idea for a one shot kind of grew into a bigger kind of creature and it's now a multi-chapter fic. Set pretty much immediately after Coming Out. If all goes well, the final chapter will be up on Christmas Day (not entirely sure how many chapters it will have, probably 4 or 5).  
> I wrote this entirely for my own entertainment after sharing an idea with Mazarin221b about something that will happen towards the end of the fic. As usual, a short twitter thirst-convo is all it takes to get me to write about the boys haha. I do hope you enjoy it, too :) 
> 
> This story is told from King's POV.

“P’King?”

King looked up from his book, chewing on his pencil. Ram had been quiet for the better part of an hour, which wasn’t unusual at all. But he had been distracted, flipping through the text book several times as if he would find answers to his question in unrelated chapters. 

“Hmm?”

“My … we are doing a Christmas thing.”

King put down his pencil. 

“A Christmas thing?”

“I mean, a Christmas dinner.”

“And that means?”

“We get together and eat, and there’s music, and, well, presents. Drinks.”

“When you say _we_?”

“My family.”

“And you are telling me this why?”

Ram pushed the book away from him. “I’d like you to come.”

King smirked, wondering why Ram was shy asking him about it. “I don’t know anything about Christmas, apart from the lights and decorated trees and presents and lots of food bits.”

“You don’t have to know anything. I’d just like it if you came.”

King sighed and cocked his head. “I don’t know.”

He hadn’t meant to upset Ram, and when he saw his face fall for a moment, he knew he needed to be more careful. Clearly, he had deliberated for quite some time how best to broach the subject, so it must have been important to him. 

“I just don’t know if I feel comfortable not knowing your traditions and … you know, the food you’ll eat.”

“Lobster,” Ram said with a small smile. “You know lobster.”

King chuckled. “Alright, that’s a start.”

“I can make you a list. A spreadsheet.”

“Ram’s Christmas list,” King grinned. “But I need to know it all. Not just the basics.”

Ram nodded, and King was glad to see that he looked happy now, even though he tried to keep his expression neutral. 

“Is it important to you?”

“Hmm?”

“Christmas?”

Ram chewed on his bottom lip for a while before he nodded. “It’s silly, really, but we’ve held on to those traditions since I was a child and … it’s going to be … normal, which isn’t actually what it should be, considering dad ... but … you’ll be there.”

King nodded. If Ram’s father would be there they would all have to pretend that things were back to how they had been. But if King was there, then the situation would have changed just a little and they could focus on him rather than the elephant in the room. It made sense that Ram wanted him to come, though he was sure that he also wanted him there because Ram wanted him to get to know that part of his life. 

“Okay. I’ll come. But you have to …”

“I know. I’m on it,” Ram squeezed his arm and then pulled the book back towards him, smiling down on his exercises for a while until he started reading again and the smile was replaced by a look of deep concentration. King loved it when Ram smiled, but he also loved it when Ram was concentrating on something. He looked so sincere then. 

He sighed and went back to his own reading, smiling when Ram’s foot touched his under the table.

****

He’d forgotten about it the next afternoon when Ram found him at their usual table behind the library and handed him both a cup of iced coffee and a three-paged sheet. 

“What’s that?”

“Homework.”

“Hmm?” King looked down on it, grinning when he saw what it was.

_Christmas with the Veras – prep sheet_

“Alright.”

“It’s all the things I could think of that we do or that we refer to and … oh, I forgot. My grandparents are coming over from Australia.”

“Oh.”

“They already … know about you,” Ram said quietly and sat down next to King, pressing his shoulder against King’s by way of apology. 

“Do they know how devastatingly handsome I am?” King asked, nudging his shoulder with his chin. 

Ram predictably rolled his eyes but then he nodded. “I sent them photos, so yes.”

“Are they nice?”

“Hmm. They don’t speak Thai, though. They are Russian-Australian.”

“Oh.”

“What?”

King flipped through the pages. “You only put down the Australian traditions.”

Ram took the list back. “Do you really want the summary of their traditions as well?”

“What if they ask me questions and I’ll not know what to say?”

“They won’t expect you to be familiar …”

“But I could impress them.”

Ram stroked his wrist with his thumb. “You will impress them anyway.” 

King needed a minute to get over the loving look on Ram’s face as he said that. 

“Are you going to be silent?” King asked and Ram chuckled. 

“Depends.”

“On what?”

“On my mood.”

“You are walking on thin ice here, Ram Vera.”

Ram looked around quickly to check whether anyone was watching them and then pulled up King’s hand and pressed a kiss to his knuckles. “You’ll be fine. I promise.”

King nodded and took the list back from Ram. “Let me read this while you work on the extension of that. 

****

The next day, Ram came home with several large bags. It was ten days to Christmas and King was getting a little nervous after all. When Ram started unpacking the bag in the kitchen, King realised that he was about to bake something. He was both terrified and intrigued, but when Ram told him to just hold a wooden spoon and stir slowly, he decided that everything would be fine. They would follow the recipe and make … _Christmas Pudding_. 

King stared at the photo on the printed-out recipe Ram had put down on the table. “That’s not pudding.”

“Yes, it is.”

“Pudding is … gooey and is chocolate or vanilla flavoured,” King protested and Ram shook his head. “In most parts of the world, yes, but pudding is desert.”

“Yes, I know.”

“No. I mean, we call desert pudding.”

“But this is a cake.”

“Desert cake?” Ram tried to look cute and succeeded to an almost frightening degree, and King was suddenly too busy trying not to wipe the table clean and crowd Ram against it to react in any appropriate way.

“P'King?” Ram asked, looking a little worried now. 

“Fine,” King sighed. “Christmas pudding. What do I do?”

“I’ll measure, you stir.”

Ram began chopping and then throwing different dried fruit into the bowl and then pulled a bottle of Rum and a can of beer out of his backpack. 

“There’s … booze in your Christmas cake?”

“Pudding,” Ram smirked and nodded. He added sugar and waited until King had stirred everything for another couple of minutes before he poured a bit of rum and stout into the mix. Then he added a bit more rum. 

“Are you sure?”

“Mum always just pours,” Ram shrugged. “I guess.”

“It smells nice. What do we do now?”

“Cover it and let it rest.”

“What?”

“Patience. 24 hours of rest before we continue.”

“What else do we do, then?”

“Cookie dough.”

“Okay, that’s easy.”

“There are seven kinds that we usually make …” Ram turned the recipe for the Christmas pudding over to reveal a list of different cookie recipes.

“You’re joking.”

“No. I just want you to try them all so you can decide which ones are your favourites. Do you have any allergies I don’t know about?”

“No … I …” King drew his finger along the lists of ingredients. “That’s going to take a while.”

“Yes,” Ram beamed at him and King realised that Ram didn’t just want him to come to his family’s dinner, but that he was getting excited about Christmas itself. 

“Okay, which one do we do first?”

They spent the better part of the afternoon stirring ingredients together and kneading dough, wrapping the finished batches in cling film and putting them in the fridge. 

Ram blew his hair out of his eyes and then wiped his forehead with the back of his hand. There were traces of flour on his chin and in his hair and a bit of dough stuck to the nail of his thumb. King took his hand before Ram could notice and then pulled his thumb into his mouth, smiling at Ram’s surprised expression. When he used his teeth to scrape off the dough, Ram chuckled and used his other fingers to gently stroke King’s face. 

When King did not free his thumb after this, but instead twirled his tongue around it, Ram put his free hand against the small of his back and pulled him flush against his body. 

“Are you suggesting a shower?”

King grinned, Ram’s thumb held securely by his teeth. 

“Okay,” Ram conceded and pulled on his hand, but King did not let go. “Yeah, you’re right. We should clean up first,” he nodded as if King had actually made that argument. He let go of him, pouting a little. 

“I didn’t suggest …”

Ram stepped back and began securing the bags of sugar and flour and chocolate chips and nuts that were crowding on the edge of the table. 

“Go wipe it?” Ram asked, but King knew it was an order. 

“Fine,” he said as petulantly as he could and he was almost sure he heard Ram bite back a laugh as he passed him on the way to the sink. 

In the end, he was glad that Ram had suggested they clean up first, because they did not return to the kitchen that night. King made sure that there was no trace of flour left anywhere on Ram’s body, using his mouth to be absolutely certain, and then Ram retaliated in kind. When they fell into bed, both exhausted and giddy, Ram told King about the Christmases when they had gone to the beach, along with what felt like the rest of the city, and eaten sea food straight from the grill and drank Coca Cola, giggling at the snowflakes printed on the label of the bottles. 

King listened quietly, loving the joy in Ram’s voice as he remembered his childhood. He had never spoken to him for such a long time, and King found himself wishing that he would never stop. 

King played with his damp hair, twirling strands around his index finger and tucking them behind Ram’s ear only for them to unfurl again and fall back into his face. 

“If your grandparents are from Russia, then they’ll have seen snow,” King remarked when Ram told him about the soap bubble machine that someone had brought to the beach once, imitating snow. He remembered how rapt he had been, and how disappointed when it didn’t feel cold against the palm of his hand when he caught some of those flakes. 

“My grandpa, yes. He showed us pictures. They used to get a lot of snow.”

King nodded. “It also means it’s very cold, doesn’t it?”

Ram chuckled. “I have never been, but I imagine its painfully cold.”

“Hmm,” King moved closer and kissed Ram. “I’m not too sad about not getting snow then.”

When he moved back, Ram looked surprisingly sincere. “Thank you for helping me today.”

King wanted to joke that he just wanted to impress Ram’s mum, but he knew Ram did not refer to that. 

“Thank you for teaching me.”

Ram’s lips twitched. “You tutor me in applied mathematics and I tutor you in cookie dough.”

“Sounds about right,” King smiled and kissed him again. 

****

King felt a twinge in his wrist when he woke up in the morning. He told Ram about it, who just grinned at him. “You need to build up some strength, P’King,” he said, laughter in his eyes. “I can’t have you drop out injured before we even properly started.”

“Please don’t tell me you work out like you do just so you survive December each year?” King asked, massaging his wrist. 

Ram chuckled. “Come on, get up, we have a lot of work to do.”

“Are you … going to do your homework for tomorrow?”

Ram huffed. “After we’re done with today’s to-do list.”

“Am I on that list?” King asked, waggling his eyebrows at Ram, who just shook his head in pity. 

“It really depends.”

“On what?”

“Well, your … performance today.”

“Was all of this a ploy to get me to do all the work?”

Ram squinted at him and then shook his head. “You asked.”

King pulled the duvet up and over their heads, trapping them underneath it. “I did.”

“Don’t worry about my homework. I’ll get it done.” 

Ram let King cuddle him for a bit before he sighed. “Come on. Lots to do.”

Taking a detour via the bathroom, they trudged into the kitchen, not bothering putting on any more clothes than their underwear.

“So, what’s today?” King asked even as Ram pulled a rolling pin out of one of the bags that King hadn’t dared to look at. 

“You might want to warm up,” Ram grinned and put it down on the table before he went to the fridge and got out the first batch of cookie dough. 

“I haven’t even had coffee yet,” King complained and Ram rolled his eyes. 

“You get to try the first cookie with your coffee. It’s worth waiting.”

“Is that also a tradition?”

“No, but it sounds like it could be a good one.”

“I’m going to die,” King stated, falling into a chair. 

Ram laughed and King found it very hard to remain grumpy. He couldn’t quite believe how talkative Ram had been all day the previous day and it seemed like this day wouldn’t be much different. It was almost as if talking about Christmas took away any inhibitions he still had about speaking his mind without second guessing himself. It almost seemed normal now that Ram was talking to him, but occasionally he remembered how desperately he had wanted him to even say a single full sentence to him mere weeks ago. And there were still days when he barely talked. 

But anything related to Christmas seemed to have triggered something in Ram that made him positively chatty. 

“I promise, you will enjoy this,” Ram came to stand behind him and nipped at his ear. 

King sighed. “Fine. I believe you.”

“Good. Now go wash your hands.”

King did as he was told, eying the coffee machine longingly. 

Ram taught him how to work the dough just enough so he could roll it out. Then he handed him a box with cookie cutters. A star, a heart, a snowflake, a Christmas tree and several sizes of gingerbread men. 

“We didn’t make any gingerbread dough, did we?” King asked. He remembered the taste faintly, but couldn’t recall when he had last eaten any. 

Ram smiled. “That’s for tomorrow.” He turned on the oven which King rarely ever used, and covered the two baking trays with baking parchment. Once King had cut out the shapes, he transferred them onto the trays. The dough was exactly enough to fill the two trays. 

“Can I invent a tradition, too?” King asked after Ram had placed the trays into the oven and set a timer on his phone. 

“Hmm?”

“We could kiss for eight minutes.”

Ram stared at him before he burst out laughing. “I was going to make you coffee, but … sure.”

“Oww,” King scrunched up his face and glanced back and forth between Ram and the coffee machine. Then he inhaled deeply and took Ram’s hand, pulling him close.

“You choose me?” Ram asked, his eyes wide with genuine surprise.

King shrugged. “Looks like it.”

Ram took one final step and wrapped his arms around him. And then he kissed him. 

King had not expected that he would end up sitting on the floury table, his legs wrapped around Ram’s hips, his fingernails digging into his back while Ram elicited needy sounds from him with his lips and tongue when the alarm shocked them both into stillness. 

“Fuck,” Ram said, more passionately than King had ever heard him swear, and he let go of him, watching him, filled with amusement, as he pulled out the baking trays while sporting an impressive erection. 

“Please don’t burn yourself,” he told him, quite unhelpfully from where he still sat on the table, fighting the urge to slip his hand into his shorts. After Ram had put down both trays, he immediately went to make coffee, not looking at King once until he prepared a small plate with several of the slightly cooled down cookies and two mugs of coffee.

“Couch?” he suggested, looking pointedly at the table and not at King’s crotch. 

King sighed but then he moved off the table and Ram immediately turned him around and began to brush flour off his shorts. King grunted, taking hold of the edge of the table and he could hear the breath in Ram’s throat hitch at it. When Ram smacked him, he grunted again, and Ram stepped closer and pressed a wet kiss to the nape of his neck. 

“No sex until we’re done.”

“Wha …” King turned around, doing his best to look upset. “Why?”

“Because I know us. Kisses are okay, but that’s it.”

“Well, where do you draw the line?” King asked and took one of the coffee mugs, walking to the couch quickly and then sitting down with his knees drawn close to his body. 

“What do you mean?” Ram asked and held out the plate for King to pick one of his creations. King sipped on his coffee, forgetting for a moment that he was supposed to look pissed off, and then he took a bite from the cookie. 

Ram had been right. It was excellent. The cookie itself was a tad too sweet, but together with the coffee, it was incredible. 

When he looked at Ram again, he just caught a proud little smile before he blanked his expression. 

“I mean that the way you kiss is indistinguishable from sex.”

“Thank you, I think,” he frowned and then huffed. “In any case. No coming until we are done?”

“Why are you making up all of these mean rules on top of everything else.”

Ram grinned as he bit into his own cookie. “It’s not Christmas yes, it’s Advent. A period of joyful expectation and … well, waiting.”

“You are making that up.”

“Advent calendars are a thing.”

“So?”

“So, you only get a little teaser or a tiny sweet each day until …”

“Ram, are you saying no sex until Christmas?” 

He knew he had sounded honestly scandalised when Ram almost dropped his coffee mug. “No, P’King. I am saying no sex until we have baked all the dough. I’m not insane!”

“Good. I … wasn’t sure.”

“Finish your coffee,” Ram said, hiding his grin behind his own mug. 

By the time they started on the second batch, King was already plotting how to get Ram to break his own rule.

****

Ram wiped the table and poured flour across the surface again. This time, Ram rolled out the dough, knowing it was a little harder to work. King watched him, shamelessly staring at his body as he leaned forward, putting his full weight behind his movement.

It was only when Ram was done that he looked at King, clearly surprised that he hadn’t moved away from where he had stood, leaning against his counter, his arms crossed in front of his chest. 

“Cookie cutters?” King suggested unhelpfully.

“No, these get cut with a knife. Do you want to do it?”

King sighed. “No. I don’t want to make any mistakes.”

Ram smiled sweetly at him and then went to get King’s pizza roller and began slicing back and forth across the dough. He was moving so fast that King forgot about ogling Ram and instead stepped closer to see what he was doing. Once Ram picked one up, he saw that he had cut the dough into diamond shapes. 

“We dip them in chocolate, once they are done, but we can let them sit for a bit and do it another day.”

“Those are the ones with lots of ginger, right?” King asked, trying to recall which ingredients had gone into which dough. 

“Yes, exactly.”

“How long in the oven?”

“Eight minutes, too.”

“Do I get to kiss you again?”

Ram sighed. “I was going to get out the next batch.”

“So only your rules apply?”

Ram chuckled and stepped closer to King, only to step around him at the last second to clear the baking trays of the cooled first batch of cookies. “Put these into the container, please?”

“Ai’Ning!” King complained, and Ram stood a little straighter. Good. He had wondered how Ram would react to his nickname but with some added desperation. 

“Please?” Ram repeated, not even looking at him, and King began to suspect that he was doing all this on purpose after all. 

King pulled open one of the plastic boxes which he usually used to refrigerate leftovers, and carefully placed the cookies into it, making sure not to break any. Ram took the baking trays from him and began placing the ginger cookies onto them before he put them in the oven. Then he washed his hands.

King used the moment he was distracted to wrap his arms around Ram and kiss along his neck, making Ram squirm. When he bit him, a little harder than he had intended, Ram grunted and clasped at his arms against his chest. 

“Did you like that?” King asked, pushing forward a little harder, leaving no more room for Ram to move. 

“Maybe?” Ram breathed and King was surprised by how much this little admission turned him on. 

“Fuck, Ram. Why did you have to make up that stupid rule?”

“I was going to kiss you, but …” 

“But?”

“Now I didn’t set the timer, so I’ll have to watch the cookies to make sure they don’t burn.”

King sighed deeply. “Are you trying to make me hate Christmas?” He knew he wasn’t playing fair, but Ram immediately turned around, his expression worried. 

“No. I’m sorry. I …” he sighed. “I just know that if we don’t keep track of the time, we won’t manage all this.”

“So what? Then we finish the rest tomorrow. Like dipping those into chocolate,” he pointed at the oven. 

Ram nodded. “I’m sorry. I did enjoy that,” his lips stretched into a smile and King shook his head. 

“Those cookies can’t have been in there for longer than two minutes.” He grabbed his phone and punched 5 minutes into the timer before he put it back onto the counter. “Now, where were we?”

Once again, the alarm drove them apart, and his time King could tell that Ram was ready to let everything burn to the ground. He decided that if he had to suffer, then Ram should suffer too, and excused himself to go to the bathroom. 

Ram watched him go with wide eyes but then he seemed to remember that he needed to take out the baking trays and turned away from him. King was very tempted to take care of his erection, but despite everything, it did feel a bit like a challenge. And if he cheated now, he was sure that Ram would understand, but still be disappointed. He washed his hands and face and then pointed a finger at his reflection. “Keep it together, King.” He wagged his finger at him a couple of times before he had to laugh about his own silliness and he decided that he was calm enough to face Ram again. 

He had been wrong. Ram was busy kneading a particularly stubborn batch of dough, putting his full weight and strength behind it and grunting with each time he pushed it against the surface of the table. 

When he noticed that King had come back, he laughed and then pressed his lips together, biting back the sounds he had made. 

“Oh, by all means, please continue to make love to it,” King grinned, running his hand along Ram’s arm, remembering how easily Ram was able to lift him up and to drag him along while King had absolutely no choice but to follow him. 

“P’King?” Ram asked when he slipped his hand from his shoulder and under his arm to his chest. 

“Hmm?”

“Can you get out the nuts?”

King froze. “What?”

Ram stopped trying to beat the dough into submission. “The nuts. In the bag. We’ll need them for the Christmas pudding.”

King needed a moment to process the request and then slowly detached himself from Ram. Either he was losing his mind or Ram had found the perfect way to drive him crazy. He watched Ram’s face carefully as he walked over to the bag, but Ram looked entirely innocent and he started doubting himself until he pulled out the first bag and Ram’s mask slipped. For a moment, he couldn’t help but grin. He had himself under control within a second, but King had seen it. 

He put one the bags of almonds and walnuts on the table, watching Ram’s face, hoping for another glimpse of amusement. But it didn’t come. He was about to round the table and show Ram just what he thought of his little game when the dough finally gave way under Ram’s hands and he began to roll it out. 

“Take them over there and chop them, please?” Ram indicated the counter. “The recipe is in the corner over there. Just measure out the amount and then pulse them in the mixer a couple of times? You’ll also need breadcrumbs, flour, butter, … then there should be a little bag with spices already mixed, and cherries and three eggs.”

King sighed but picked up the recipe and then followed the steps exactly as he had been told. Once he started stirring the mix, he had to laugh, because it was ridiculously hard to do. 

“Why is everything so hard and sticky today?” he asked, dragging the wooden spoon through the dough. He was surprised to hear a loud noise and then Ram’s choked laughter. Turning around, he found Ram sitting in a chair, two cookie cutters on the ground in front of him, while he giggled helplessly. It took him a couple of seconds until he realised what he had said and how that had sounded. “Oh my god, Ning!”

Ram wiped a tear from his face and looked up at him. “I’m sorry,” he apologised, dissolving into giggles again. “It must be the rum.”

“Hmm?”

“The rum. In the pudding.”

King leaned over the bowl and inhaled. He did smell the rum, but it wasn’t anywhere near strong enough to justify that Ram would get drunk from just inhaling the fumes. 

“No. It’s definitely your dirty mind,” he shrugged. 

Ram picked up the cookie cutters and went to wash them before he returned to his dough. “Can you help?” Ram finally asked when King thought his arm was about to fall off. He gladly switched places with Ram and he couldn’t deny his envy when Ram stirred the dough as if it were a bowl of mashed potatoes. 

“Just how strong are you?” he asked, full of honest admiration.

“You already did most of the work,” Ram shook his head. “Thank you. Now you can say you made it almost on your own.”

King couldn’t help but feel a little proud at that. “We better not burn it.”

“We’ll do it tomorrow evening. It needs to sit another 24 hours and then it needs to simmer for 6.”

“Simmer?”

“In a water bath, yes.”

King stared at Ram. “Why is this cake so complicated? What were your ancestors trying to prove?”

Ram laughed. “Pudding. And I don’t know. But it’s nice that you invest so much time in something that brings you joy in the end. Before we eat it, we’ll light it. We pour a bit of warm brandy on top and then set it on fire, basically. It’s very pretty.”

King was listening, and slightly terrified, but he couldn’t really concentrate on anything other than what he had said about investing time in something that would bring him joy. He looked at the dough in the bowl Ram was still stoically stirring and suddenly grew quite emotional about it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know the timing is off by just a little bit, but I can't be bothered to do an exact rundown of the events and the corresponding dates after camp, and count the days in Homecoming and Coming out. So, this might be off by 3 or 4 days within the timeline. Sorry XD


	2. Chapter 2

King was sure it was mostly the fact that the twinge in his wrists started crawling up his arms and into his shoulders that prevented him from trying to seduce Ram every change he got. He was still teasing him at every opportunity, and he had lost count of their collective erections that day, but once the final batch had been turned into cookies and cooled off on top of the stove, he was too exhausted to even attempt anything. 

“I need a shower.”

Ram nodded. “I’ll clean up.”

“You’re not joining me?”

Ram shook his head and King was both disappointed and relieved. 

He almost fell asleep as the hot water beat down on his shoulders. Maybe Ram had lied about working out for another reason. He was clearly less physically exhausted than he was. 

King did not shave, nor did he bother drying his hair. He just went back into the kitchen and fell into a chair, looking up at Ram in surprise when he put a cup of coffee and a bowl of Phad Thai in front of him. 

“When did you …”

Ram sat down opposite him, putting down another bowl. He looked serious, so King stopped speaking. 

“Thank you,” Ram finally said. “I couldn’t have done this without you.”

King nodded. “Of course!”

“I’ll help with … your pain,” Ram said quietly and began eating.

“I’m fine,” King said, wondering why he wasn’t just accepting whatever Ram had planned. Painkillers would be the obvious choice, but maybe he meant something different?

Ram just glanced at him and then went back to eating. King sighed and plucked a piece of chicken from Ram’s bowl. He loved the look Ram gave him every time he stole food from him, as if he was scandalised every single time that King would dare to be so audacious. 

“What are we going to wear?” King asked, if only to distract himself a little. 

“For the dinner?”

“Hmm.”

Ram shrugged. “Clothes.”

“Oh, that’s very helpful,” King teased. “Should I get a suit or something?”

Ram leaned back and looked at him with a half-smile. “I’d like that.”

King felt himself blush, but he wouldn’t give Ram the satisfaction of admitting to being flattered. “What would your family like?”

Ram shrugged again. 

“Ram!”

“What?”

“Just tell me.”

“I’d like it very much if you wore a suit.”

“What it I dress up and everyone else wears ugly Christmas jumpers?”

“You’ll be stunning.”

King sighed. “That’s not the point.”

“Speak for yourself,” Ram said under his breath and King narrowed his eyes at him. 

“I am.”

“Fine. Wear a shirt. Clean trousers. Good shoes.”

“Thank you.”

Ram smiled briefly and then seemed to get lost in thought. King knew that he had been talking more than usual and while it had just been the two of them, he knew he was probably exhausted, too, just in a different way than he was. But he suddenly reached out and pulled King’s hand across the table, checking his watch. 

“Oh, erm, just so you know, P’Thara is coming over?”

King pulled back his hand, not quite comprehending what Ram was saying.

“What? Why? When?”

“I asked him to come so that you don’t have to go back to the hospital.”

The stitches. King had forgotten to go and have his stitches out and it was high time for him to do it. 

“Oh.”

“He should be here in twenty minutes. Is that alright with you?”

King chewed on a spoonful of stir fry. Then he nodded. “I’ll need you to hold my hand.”

“Of course,” Ram nodded as if he hadn’t expected that this could go any other way. 

King exhaled slowly. “I should probably put on some clothes.”

Ram smiled as he let his eyes wander over his body. “I don’t think he’d mind.”

“Well, I think he might. We should also turn on the AC. It’s much too hot.”

Ram nodded and got up, finding the remote and pressing the button, starting the AC in the living room. “I guess I’ll have a shower, too.”

King watched him go, regretting now that he hadn’t asked Ram to join him earlier. Ram in boxer shorts was a sight to behold. Not quite as hot as he looked on only his black boxer briefs, but he wouldn’t complain, ever. 

He finished his food and then washed up, reading over the recipe for plum pudding again. His eyes caught on the final line, stating that every member of the family had to stir, for good luck, and he realised that Ram had gotten him to do it without explaining why. 

His finger involuntarily kept touching the word “family.” 

He realised he hadn’t moved when Ram returned to the kitchen, towelling his hair dry, wearing his jeans, but no shirt yet. 

“P’King?” 

King wiped his face and huffed. “Are you done?”

“Are you okay?”

King nodded and turned around. He remembered how self-conscious he had gotten when he had talked about a possible proposal, but now that he thought about it, he realised that it didn’t matter how they defined what they had. They had barely been in an official relationship for a week, and yet he knew in his heart that Ram was, in fact, his family. 

“I’m sorry, I’m just …”

“Are you scared it’s going to hurt?” Ram asked, and King was a little at a loss as to what to answer. He had all but forgotten that Thara was about to pull threads from his skin. 

He sighed. “I should get dressed.”

Ram smirked. “I told you, I don’t think he’ll mind.”

“I am not going to be half naked in front of Duen’s cousin.”

“It’s a lovely view,” Ram smiled sweetly now, making it even harder for King to stay on topic. 

“Just …” he shook his head and then headed straight to the bedroom where he pulled on the first clothes he could find. Then he pulled out one of his t-shirts and pressed it into Ram’s hands when he returned to the kitchen. “Put this on before I tell Thara that he’s not needed here after all.”

Ram grinned but did as he was told. “I’ll go and check on my homework, hmm?”

King nodded and watched him make his way over to the desk. Two chairs were sitting in front of it now, and Ram’s books were on the left side of it while King kept his on the right. He had rehoused several of the plants that he had kept on the desk and moved most of the books onto another shelf. Watching Ram sit down and pull his workbook from his pile made his heart flutter. When Ram picked up his lucky pencil and absent-mindedly tapped it against his lips as he leafed through the book to find the right chapter, King felt his heart in his throat again. 

Ram making himself at home in his presence was still new and each time he witnessed it, he felt that he would burst with happiness. 

He simply watched Ram be still for a while before he sighed and pushed a hand into his hair as he began to read the exercise. He was just about to walk up to him and distract him against his better judgement when the doorbell rang. 

King sighed and turned towards the door, greeting Thara who carried a large medical bag. King immediately felt nauseous. 

“How have you been?” Thara asked, indicating his head. 

“Fine. It hasn’t hurt in a while. I was always careful when I washed it.”

“Did any of the thread come out on its own?”

King knew he was probably going a little green, and Thara shook his head. “Sit down, please. On the couch, I think, legs up.”

King turned around and made a beeline for the couch.

“Hello Ram,” Thara greeted him when he found him sitting at the desk. 

“P’Thara, thank you for coming.”

Ram got up and went into the kitchen, returning with two glasses of water. He handed one to King and the other to Thara before kneeling down on the side arm of the couch, his knees pressed against King’s thigh. He looked at King, his expression open but clearly worried. “It’s not going to hurt.”

“You’ve had stitches out before?” Thara asked and Ram nodded, indicating the scar under his eyebrow.

“It’s going to tickle a little.”

“That’s not helpful,” King sighed. 

“Drink some of that,” Ram nodded at the water.

King inhaled again deeply and then took several sips from his glass. Then he handed it to Ram, who put it down on the floor. Thara opened the bag by King’s side and told him to look inside. “If you want to, I can listen to your heart and lungs, you know, just so it feels like a proper doctor’s visit.”

King tried a small smile but his face felt numb. He tried to tell himself that no needle would come anywhere near him, but he couldn’t stop himself being afraid. 

“Okay, usually my patients get that only after they are done, but …” Thara pulled out a lollipop and handed it to King. “Unwrap that.”

King wasn’t entirely sure whether Thara was taking the piss – it was hard to tell with him sometimes – but he decided to humour him. He still depended on him to perform the procedure, because he was fairly certain he wouldn’t let anyone else do it now. He tucked at one of the loose ends of the plastic wrapping but soon realised that it was sealed rather tightly. He tried to use his fingernails but only managed to loosen a tiny bit of it. 

“It’ll be a little cold and wet for a second, that’s just the antiseptic,” Thara explained as he pulled on medical gloves and pushed his hair out of the way. King decided to not care and instead focus on the lollipop wrapper. It was strawberry-cream and, weirdly, the image on the wrapper alone reminded him of his childhood and he could almost taste it just by looking at it. With every passing moment he was more determined to get it open. 

“You have really nice hair,” Thara said, sounding quite serious, and Ram huffed. 

“What?” King tried to look at Ram while keeping his head still. Contrary to his expectation, Ram looked delighted. 

“It’s not just _nice_. It’s the best hair. It’s beautiful, like the rest of you,” Ram smiled at him and King was both touched and suspicious. Ram had said some very lovely things to him before, but he had not expected him to say them in front of an acquaintance.

Thara chuckled and pulled away his hand only to push more hair out of the way. His fingers seemed very sure of what they were doing, so King wasn’t worried. The way he gently rubbed at his scalp with his index finger added to that. He was probably testing to see whether his scar had hardened. “I see.”

“I swear,” Ram added, taking hold of King’s wrist and stroking his skin gently while looking up at Thara. “The way it shines in the sunlight. Nobody has hair like P’King.”

“Could you stop praising my hair and just get it over with?” King asked, once again starting to pull on the wrapper. “If you don’t do it soon, I’ll faint after all.”

Thara let go of his hair and sat down on the couch before he handed him a small petri dish with six pieces of thread. 

“What?”

“All done. Let me disinfect it again, just to make sure.”

King gaped. “Wha … what?”

“Works every time,” Thara explained as he poured a different kind of antiseptic onto a small cotton ball and then gently dabbed it against his scar. 

“What does?”

“Flattery,” he said with a wide grin. “And the lollipop. One of those, but you seemed susceptible to either.”

“Did you know?” He stared at Ram, who shook his head but couldn’t hide his grin. “It was obvious what he was doing, so I just went along with it.”

“But I wanted to hold your hand,” King pouted, knowing what an utterly ridiculous thing it was to say.

“I know. I’m sorry.”

Thara put the dish down on the sofa and took his gloves off. “If that is all, I’ll be on my way. I’ve got the late shift at the hospital. You did really well,” he nodded at King. King felt that from anyone else, it would have sounded condescending, but Thara seemed to be entirely serious. Maybe Ram had told him about his phobia. Maybe he had told him already when he had taken him to the hospital in the first place. King realised that Thara must be an excellent doctor and he was glad that Duen had him to look up to. 

Ram squeezed his wrist and then got up and saw Thara out while King just stared at him. When Ram came back, he picked up the petri dish and carefully put it down on the desk. Then he returned to the sofa and climbed into King’s lap. 

“Are you okay?”

“I knew you wouldn’t usually talk like that in front of anyone else.”

Ram grinned and kissed him. “And yet …”

“I didn’t feel a thing. It didn’t even tickle.”

“I’m glad I asked him to come.”

“He … heard you say that, about me.”

Ram shrugged. 

“He … he wasn’t even surprised.”

“I guess we just came out to him, too, hmm? Although I think he knew how I feel about you, from when you got the stitches. I don’t even remember what I said, but … you know.”

King shook his head in amazement and finally wrapped his arms around Ram, pulling him closer and pressing his face against his chest. “Thank you.”

“You are _most_ welcome.”

“I know I should be telling you to get your homework done, but …” he let his hands wander down Ram’s back and then he pulled him flush against him, leaving no room for interpretation. Ram grinned and leaned back a little, allowing King to press kisses against his sternum and then move lower. 

“Oh fuck,” King suddenly said, looking up at Ram.

Ram just raised an eyebrow in question. 

Where King had been green around the ears earlier, he was now going red. 

“I just thought that if I made love to you like this, and you leaned back, I could probably reach you with my mouth.”

Ram stared at him with a lopsided grin that made King’s heart beat faster. 

“I should go back to my homework.”

“Can’t we … do a dry run?”

“No,” Ram shook his head, though King could tell that he was trying to convince himself as much as him. “Your neck and arms are hurting and we are not going to resort to gymnastics just so you can give me a blowjob.”

“But you just showered and …”

“No. After. And without backpain.”

King’s eyes widened. “I didn’t …”

“Oh my god, P’King. I mean your back. Your actual back.”

King knew that his entire face was flushed red now, but he couldn’t hide it from Ram, who looked at him as if he wasn’t sure whether to scold or laugh at him. 

“Go, do your homework, then,” King pushed at Ram’s chest, regretting it immediately, because he wanted to keep his hands right where they were. And while Ram leaned back a little further, King suddenly realised that he wasn’t actually moving anywhere. He decided to keep his hands where they were, and squeezed, his breath hitching when Ram’s eyes fluttered closed and his lips opened, just a little. 

So, he did it again, and then dropped one hand between Ram’s legs, squeezing him through his jeans.

“Fuck!” Ram breathed and leaned froward again, his forehead against King’s shoulder. 

“But you just …”

Ram turned his head just enough to be able to glare at King. King stopped talking and instead squeezed again. 

“No, no, no, no, no,” Ram gasped against his neck. “P’King! Stop!” But even as the words tumbled out of his mouth his hands clasping at King’s back belied them. 

King squeezed again and Ram arched into his touch, his mouth falling open before he closed his teeth over the collar of his t-shirt and then he jerked, once, twice, and again, grunting with each thrust, and then he slumped forward, his body going limp as his teeth let go of King’s t-shirt.

He could feel moist heat seeping through Ram’s jeans and he realised that he hadn’t put on underwear after his shower. 

“Fuck, Ram, I’m sorry!” he tried to apologise, though he definitely didn’t mean it. 

Ram exhaled loudly and then sat up, rubbing his flushed face. “No. I’m sorry.”

“For what?”

Ram huffed and then shook his head. “I wanted you so much, all day, and … I couldn’t wait any longer.”

“And you are apologising about his, why?”

“Because I made you wait, too.”

“Well, you just came in your jeans, so …”

“So?”

“You’ll have to wash them and clean up again even though you just showered and while I appreciate how utterly hot this was, it can’t have been all that good for you.”

Ram snorted and kissed King messily. “Oh, it was good, don’t worry. But you are right, I should get out of these,” he moved back and off King and the couch, making a face as he undid his jeans and carefully pushed them down. 

King swallowed hard when he realised that Ram hadn’t grown entirely flaccid. But before he could do anything about it, Ram stepped out of his jeans and then made his way into the bathroom. King leaned back on the couch and gave himself a squeeze through his trousers. 

Ram clearly still held on to his plan to get his homework done, but he had broken his own rule, and King was slightly pleased that he had managed to turn Ram on so much that he hadn’t been able to resist his touch, nor stop himself when he knew he was getting close. 

When Ram returned, he did not even look at King. He was wearing sweatpants now and he folded his legs under him when he sat down at the desk, immediately beginning to read. 

King sighed. He should probably check his own reading, though he was fairly sure that he had already prepared for his classes on Friday, before Ram had handed him coffee and the list of Christmas traditions. 

He made himself and Ram a cup of tea and then joined him at the desk. Strangely, the overwhelming urge to drag him out of his chair and kiss him until he grew light headed had been replaced with contentment. Maybe it was the fact that Ram looked so very much at home at his desk, and maybe it was the fact that they had talked about having sex and it hadn’t been weird at all. King wasn’t sure why he worried about it, but there had been a second of panic when he had blank point admitted his fantasy to Ram earlier. It could have been weird, but Ram had taken it in his stride. It was obvious that he had immediately imagined it, despite of what he had said, because him staying in his lap against his own better judgement and then allowing King to make him come was clearly a consequence of his words, too. 

“P’King?”

“Hmm?”

“You haven’t touched your books,” Ram’s eyes flicked from his face to the books in front of King and back to his face.

“Sorry, I was busy loving you.”

He hadn’t meant to say that either. He hadn’t even thought about how to answer him. The words had just fallen out of his mouth, just as they had earlier. And he almost regretted saying something so utterly corny, but the amazement on Ram’s face made him forget that thought immediately.

“P’King,” Ram said very quietly. He hadn’t moved, his hand still on the page of the book he had been reading and the other holding his pencil in mid-air. 

“Sorry, I … I’ll do some work now.”

Ram still looked at him as he grew a little flustered, pulling the book he needed out from the pile and finding that he had, indeed, already done his reading. 

“Actually, I’m already done,” he said at the book. Not at Ram. If he looked at him now, he might just combust.

“Okay,” Ram said, his voice almost a whisper now. “Can you … can you think of a wish?”

“Hmm?” He did look at Ram then and felt a little like he had at the park, when Ram had leaned into his personal space and they had been so close to kissing and everything in him had yearned to close the gap, only now he was allowed to, so he did. 

Ram’s lips stretched into a smile as he kissed him and King moved his chair a little closer so he could deepen the kiss, one hand against the back of Ram’s neck, keeping him in place, because no matter how certain he was of Ram’s feelings for him, in the back of his mind he still feared that he might pull away from him. 

When Ram put his hands on his cheeks and pushed him away, just a little, his thumbs stroking his cheekbones, he felt that he might possibly cry, even though he couldn’t say why. 

“Think of a wish, please? For Christmas?”

“For a present?”

“Anything.”

King huffed and Ram kissed him again, briefly, before pulling back properly and turning back to his work. 

“Okay.” King pulled Ram’s list out from between his books and read through it again, ticking off the various items that Ram had either explained to him or that they had gotten done over the last two days. 

“Will I … get it from you? No matter what?”

“Within reason.”

King nodded and continued reading. When his eyes caught on the last items on the third page of the list, he glanced at Ram, who was concentrating on his exercise again, and then picked up his phone. When he found what he was looking for, he had to chuckle and Ram cocked his head in interest, but he didn’t say anything. 

“Elf on a shelf? Really? That’s creepy.”

Ram sighed. “Way to keep kids from doing things they shouldn’t. Maybe we should get your sister one …”

King laughed and squeezed Ram’s arm. “Maybe, yeah.”

He was about to check whether he would be able to have one shipped to Thailand when something else on the google image search caught his eye. He carefully moved his phone so that Ram wouldn’t be able to see his screen in case he looked over. When he realised that he needed space to think this through, he excused himself to make more tea. As he waited for the water to boil, he opened his browser again and began searching in earnest. 

“P’King?” Ram interrupted him just as he pressed the BUY button. 

“Hmm?”

“The water boiled a while ago.”

“Right,” King hastily closed the browser and prepared their tea. He ignored Ram’s curious glance when he returned to the desk. 

“Are you okay?” Ram finally asked, and King turned to him, wondering why he would ask that question. Then he realised he had been lost in thought twice until Ram brought him back, and he undoubtedly kept rolling his shoulders, cracking his knuckles and massaging his wrists. 

“Hmm. I’m okay,” he smiled. “Hurry up, though. I want to cuddle.”

“Cuddle, really?” Ram repeated, not looking at him. 

“Hmm, maybe a bit more.”

“Maybe,” Ram said slowly, the dimple in his cheek deepening as he tried to suppress a smile. 

“Go on,” he nudged Ram’s arm and the smile finally won over. 

“Ten minutes.”

King sighed and slouched down, resting his head on his forearms, looking up at Ram. 

“That’s not distracting at all,” Ram said quietly, but when King wanted to sit up again, he reached out and placed his hand on the back of King’s head, massaging gently. “Stay,” he whispered and King turned his head just a little to be able to kiss his arm. Then he settled back down to watch Ram read.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, after all that hard (*gigglesnorts*) work, the boys finally get their reward.

It took Ram longer than ten minutes to get everything done, but when he did, he smiled widely and stretched, his shirt riding up, offering King a lovely view of a sliver of skin between his sweatpants and the shirt and a glimpse of his tattoo. 

“Okay,” he sighed and got up, “give me a bit of time and I’ll be all yours.”

“I’ll wait in the bedroom?” King asked, pulling Ram’s book over to check what he had been reading in case he would have questions after class the next day. 

Ram stopped and looked at him with a fond smile. Then he nodded. 

King turned back and quickly skimmed through the pages, checking Ram’s notes over as well. Getting such a good grade for his midterm exams seemed to have loosened a knot that had kept him from being motivated to do his homework. Now he hadn’t made any mistakes, despite the distraction. King put everything back and then picked up his pencil. He touched the little carved-out patch with Ram’s nickname with his index finger, remembering how much he had wanted to help Ram when he was so clearly afraid of sitting the test. And then he had been so confused, believing that Ram was in love with his neighbour, who had turned out to be a horrible person. 

He felt silly for having been so jealous of her, especially now that he had what he had thought she would have. He put the pencil down again and picked up the petri dish with the thread of his stitches. Then he took a photo, just so he could show off a little, before he threw the thread into the trash and cleaned the dish. He could probably use it for some moss or decoration in one of his larger jars. 

When he heard the bathroom door open, he walked towards the bedroom, taking Ram’s hand as he passed him and pulling him along. Ram had probably expected him to sit naked in the middle of the bed, but he didn’t say anything and simply closed the door behind them. 

King took off his shirt and, after Ram raised an eyebrow at him, also his trousers. He hesitated with the underwear, not wanting to appear too forward, which was ridiculous, considering that they both knew they would be naked sooner rather than later, but something kept him back. Ram stepped closer and brushed his hair out of his face, pressing a soft kiss against his cheek. King realised that he had brushed his teeth. Then Ram slowly sank down, and as he hooked his index fingers into King’s waistband, pulled his pants down to his ankles. He helped King step out of them and then smiled up. King was intensely aware of the fact that Ram hadn’t said a single word since coming out of the bathroom, and King felt the need to make him speak. 

Hearing him compliment him openly had done something to him that couldn’t quite be reversed again. He wanted Ram to praise him. He wanted him to tell him what he liked about him. As he stood there, naked, in front of Ram, who was still fully dressed, he remembered the way Ram had looked at him when he had seen him like this for the first time. That shower after almost losing his mind at the gym and their second kiss and Ram’s expression when he had realised that his plan to seduce him had actually worked. And now Ram looked up at him from where he knelt on the floor and he was growing rapidly hard, all the arousal he had suppressed during the day alighting with tenfold intensity. 

When Ram sat up and leaned forward, King was almost sure he would come as soon as he would touch him. He pulled back instinctively, seeing confusion flash across Ram’s face for a second before he sat back down on his heels, one eyebrow quirked in question. 

“I’m sorry!” he put his hands on Ram’s shoulder, leaning forward and effectively putting himself out of reach. “I just … got really close just thinking …”

“About what?” Ram asked, sounding a little breathless. 

“Our first time.”

Ram smiled sweetly at him. “What are we going to do about that?”

“I don’t know,” King admitted, his heart beating rapidly.

“I do,” Ram answered immediately. He took hold of King’s arm to pull himself up. Then he pushed him towards the bed until King’s legs hit the matrass and he let himself fall backwards. Ram immediately knelt down in front of the bed between his legs, pulling at them to make things easier for him, and let him slip into his mouth.

King arched up, unable to fight his body’s response to the warmth that suddenly enveloped him. Ram wrapped his arms around his legs and folded his hands across his stomach just under his navel, effectively pushing his legs up a little. King knew it made it slightly harder for Ram to move, but he could keep him from arching up and choking him while giving King the strangely ambiguous feeling of being trapped and kept safe at the same time.

When Ram looked up at him, his eyes narrowing in a smile while his lips were stretched around him, he knew he didn’t stand a chance. Ram had wanted to make him come and he knew exactly how. 

King clasped Ram’s wrists and held on for dear life as his orgasm rushed through him. He was surprised by its intensity, but then he remembered that this had been building up all day and he finally found release between Ram’s lips. 

He tried to keep his eyes open, but when he saw and felt Ram swallow around him, he simply couldn’t. He squeezed his eyes closed and allowed a string of endearments mixed with curses to leave his lips. When Ram snorted and immediately choked, he pulled back, yelping when Ram’s teeth hurt him a little as he let him go. Ram coughed, his eyes wet with tears, but he was still laughing, too, and King wasn’t sure whether he should be worried or amused. 

“I’m sorry?” he tried when Ram finally stopped coughing and leaned his head against his leg, wiping his face. 

“I love you,” Ram said, pressing a kiss to the sensitive skin of King’s inner thigh, making him squirm. 

King sat up, pulling Ram up with him until he could reach his lips. “And I love you,” he said, looking him straight in the eyes. There was no reason to hide this. He had already told Ram that he loved him earlier, but this still felt very different. This hadn’t been a thought that had accidentally spilled out. This confession was spoken with full intent and he felt his heart pick up speed, because even as he said it, he felt that he couldn’t quite find the words to express just much he felt for Ram. 

Ram smiled and closed the final gap between them to kiss him, pulling him down to deepen it. King humoured him for a while until he had to sit up straight and stretch a little. Ram’s face fell immediately. “Oh no. I’m sorry. I didn’t want to hurt your back even more.”

“Worth it,” King grinned and rolled his shoulders. 

“No. Sit down.” Ram climbed onto the bed and waited until King had settled in the middle of it before piling the pillows on top of each other and sitting down on them cross legged, putting him a little above King’s shoulders. “Tell me what feels good, hmm?” he asked and he rubbed his hands together for a moment to warm them up. 

“Everything,” King said with a smile, being rewarded with a light kiss against the back of his neck. Then Ram began moving his hands, gently at first, his fingers seeking out the knots in his shoulders before he began to apply more pressure, making King moan in surprise. Pleasure and pain fought for dominance for a while until he started to steady his breathing and tried consciously to relax. After a while, and a couple of worrying cracking sounds, he felt the tension drain away. 

When Ram worked along his shoulder and down his arm, he leaned back against him for a moment, closing his eyes, just enjoying being touched by him. “Hmm, this is very nice.”

“Good,” Ram said quietly and King realised that Ram had done a lot of work without him telling him that it felt amazing. 

“Could you go back to my neck for a moment, please?” he asked and Ram chuckled. 

“What’s so funny?”

“Nothing. Just you, being sweet."

King huffed and sat up again so Ram had room to move. He slowly worked his fingers up and down his neck and then finally into his hair, pressing against the base of his skull, drawing moans of pleasure from him. When he moved back down, King realised that he had had a light headache almost all day, and he only noticed it now that it was gone. 

“You are magic,” he sighed and turned his head left and right, finding he could move much more easily than before. 

“Where else?”

“Under my shoulder blades, I think.”

Ram worked his hands down his back. After he had King curse and then praise him a few minutes later, he slipped his arms around his chest. Then he took King’s hands and crossed them over his chest, taking hold of his wrists, and pulled King against his chest so quickly and hard that King couldn’t breathe for a second. Something in his back cracked loudly and as soon as Ram loosened his grip again, he felt as if he had somehow created more space in his lungs to breathe. 

“Are you okay?” Ram asked, his hands resting lightly on his shoulders now. 

“Okay?” King turned around, kneeling in front of Ram. “Okay?”

Ram just cocked his head in question and King shook his head. “That was incredible! I didn’t even know I was sore in those places and you just …”

“Hold on,” Ram said, reaching out for his face. King closed his mouth, watching him as he looked at him intently. Ram pushed his fingers along his jawline, just underneath it, and King’s eyes watered. He had not known that he was tense there, either. Ram worked the spots just under his ears, too, and then he moved on to the tendons in his neck before digging into the muscle above and underneath his collar bone. 

King couldn’t take his eyes off Ram’s face. The way his eyes followed his fingers, but flicked up to his face every now and then, made him feel special and cared for. He had to remind himself that the person in front of him was the same silent boy who had seemed so very distant and difficult to read not so long ago. 

So much had happened in such a short amount of time. The way Ram had opened up to him completely and how he had put his heart into his hands and trusted him with it was hard for him to grasp on a rational level, but in his heart, he was entirely aware of the responsibility that came with it. 

“Ram?” he asked, trapping his hands against his chest. 

“Hmm?” Ram looked up at him, his eyebrows immediately knotting into a frown when he noticed the tears in his eyes. But King shook his head and smiled. 

“Thank you.”

Ram moved his head just a little, but the question was as clear as if he had asked it. 

“For not leaving me. In the tent, I mean. For staying. For making me say it.”

Ram’s eyes were bright, even though the frown was still there. 

“And for loving me,” King nodded, the tears finally spilling. 

Finally, the frown gave way to a smile. “You are very easy to love,” Ram said quietly and King huffed, wiping his face. 

“I mean it,” Ram touched his face gently. “It really didn’t take long for me to fall in love with you.”

King chewed on his lips. “Even after you saw me with all of my plants.”

Ram laughed, a happy, relaxed laugh that made King’s heart soar. 

“There was a moment of doubt, but not about loving you,” he chuckled and licked his lips. “I just realised that I would have to take you the way you came. The full package. Talking to plants, tripping over things, afraid of dogs, ridiculously talkative, much too pretty for your own good …”

King wanted to be offended, but the way Ram’s eyes had gleamed when he had listed these things, like he knew exactly that King would be defenceless in the face of such sweetness, made it impossible for him to even attempt it.

He pouted nevertheless and was rewarded with a kiss. It started out innocently enough, but then Ram pushed him down and climbed on top of him and it didn’t take long until King’s hands were firmly attached to his arse while Ram rolled his hips against King’s with very clear intent. 

“Fuck, Ram!” King gasped and pulled back from the kiss. “Hold on a second. I need … I need to catch my breath.”

“How is your back?” Ram asked, breathing just as heavily as King, his face flushed and his hair dishevelled. King fought the urge to draw him back down, even though he had been the one demanding a break. “It’s perfect,” he said. “I haven’t felt this good in ages.”

“You will be a little sore tomorrow.”

“Is that a promise?” he asked and Ram’s eyes widened. 

“I mean your back.”

“I know,” King grinned and then laughed when Ram tickled him. 

“Actually,” Ram folded his hands across King’s chest and rested his chin on top of them. “I was thinking of what you said earlier.”

“About what?”

“About you making love to me while trying to give me a blowjob,” Ram smiled. “And I wondered, whether you’d be up for that, now that your back feels better.”

King stared at him. Was Ram really willing to let him try?

“Only if you want to, of course. I understand if you’re not ready or …”

“No,” King shook his head. “I’m ready. I think. No, I am. I want to try. Please let me try!”

Ram smiled widely and then kissed his chest before he looked up again. “We can stop anytime.”

King nodded, his neck and cheeks burning. 

“Okay,” Ram pushed himself up and kissed him quickly before he went to the wardrobe, getting out the box Ting Ting had left at his dorm. He laughed again when he opened it and saw the many different sachets and his friend’s handwritten notes. 

“Pick one,” he held it out to King, who took the box from him. 

“It should be a sensible one, right? Not a … fruit flavoured or glow in the dark one.”

Ram grinned and began undressing instead of answering the question. King stopped to look at him, making an embarrassing sound when Ram pulled his t-shirt over his head. He would never get over how hot Ram was. And the tattoos surprised him every single time, leaving him breathless for a second whenever he saw them. The urge to kiss along the one on his stomach was almost overwhelming, so he put down the box and crawled to the edge of the bed, beckoning Ram to come closer. 

“Just for a minute,” he said when Ram stopped in front of him, and he pulled him closer until he stood with his knees pressed to the bed, between King’s legs, and he kissed his stomach. Ram’s breath hitched and his hands settled against the back of King’s head. 

He was very tempted to do more than just kiss the tattoo and he had to smile when Ram’s erection bumped against his cheek. He nuzzled it for a moment, but then he pulled back and looked up. 

“How do we do this?”

“Just lie down, on your back.”

“Wait, I haven’t chosen a condom yet.” He picked up the box and then picked one whose post-it read _Get to it_. He carefully peeled the post-it off and stuck it to the surface of the bedside table. “I want to keep it,” he explained when he realised Ram had watched him closely. “You kept my things. I want to keep our things.”

Ram smiled and climbed onto the bed, kneeling in front of him. King got distracted by his erection for a second before he dragged his eyes up to look into Ram’s eyes. His cheeks were a little flushed, too, and King understood that this was special for Ram as well. This wasn’t a random one-night stand or a quick fuck in the dark backroom of a seedy club. 

He smiled at Ram and then lay down on the bed, spreading his arms. “Now what?”

“I … I already prepared, earlier,” Ram said, the colour in his cheeks deepening.

“Oh,” King breathed. 

“I did not want to assume, but I wanted to make sure that I would be ready, just in case.”

King bit his lip and nodded. “Good. That’s good. How long does it usually take?”

Ram squeezed his eyes closed for a moment before he shrugged and opened them again. “It depends, really. How much time you have, how drunk you are, how turned on …”

“But to do it properly,” King shook his head. “To not hurt.”

“A while,” Ram huffed. “You’re ready when you’re ready. We can practice in the shower, if you want. Not today. I don’t think I’ll be doing anything after … well, this.” He pointedly looked at King’s cock. Then he took the lube out of the box and squirted a few dollops onto his fingers before reaching behind him and closing his eyes for a moment.

King couldn’t deny that he would have liked to watch him more closely, but just to see his face like this was enough to make him moan. 

“Put the condom on?” Ram asked King, his voice a little breathless, and King’s hands shook as he tried to rip open the sachet. He finally succeeded and he put the wrapper away before carefully rolling it down his length. Ram whimpered and King looked up at him, filled with love and utter disbelief at the fact that he was privy to seeing Ram like this. 

“And now?” he asked, sounding just as breathless as Ram had a moment ago. 

Ram smiled and picked up the lube again, squirting some into the palm of King’s hand. “Spread it out. Mostly the top though, the rest kind of spreads on its own.”

King did as he was told, trying to approach this from a practical point of view, but the mere thought that, instead of the pressure of his hand, he would have the pressure of Ram surrounding him made him gasp. 

“Okay,” Ram reached for the box of tissues on the night stand and pulled one out to wipe his fingers and another one for King to wipe his hand. “You tell me if this is uncomfortable or painful or too much or …”

“Ai’Ning,” King interrupted him. “I’ll tell you, don’t worry!”

Ram’s slightly anxious expression gave way to another lopsided grin and King was fairly certain now that this was his absolutely favourite expression of Ram’s. It seemed so private and so rare that he couldn’t quite imagine anyone else having gotten to see it and while he couldn’t be sure of that, he just decided that it was true; that Ram only ever looked at _him_ like that. 

“Okay,” Ram inhaled deeply and then straddled him. When King wanted to take hold of Ram’s erection, he earned a slap on his wrist for that. “Not yet.” Then he reached around and took hold of King’s erection, and very slowly lowered himself. King put his hands on Ram’s thighs, feeling the strain of holding himself up like this without using his arms to support his weight. 

When he breached him, his mouth fell open. He had not expected so much pressure, intensified further by the view of Ram doing this to him, the muscles in his thighs and stomach straining, his expression one of deep concentration and his cock twitching when he moaned. 

“Fuck, Ram!” he gasped, unsure of whether he should seek out more of the pressure or try to get used to it before going further. 

When Ram didn’t move, he realised he was waiting for him to make that decision. 

“More,” he whispered, tightening his grip on Ram’s thighs. 

Ram nodded and let himself sink down further, and King forgot to breathe for a few seconds. Only when Ram let out a shaky breath he remembered and inhaled rapidly a couple of times. 

“Are you okay?” Ram asked and King nodded.

“I think so.”

“Just a little more,” Ram smiled and leaned back a tad further, pushing his fingers against him to keep him in place. “Ready?”

King knew Ram’s strength would eventually give out, so he nodded and then cursed loudly when Ram sank down all the way and straightened, taking the pressure off his thighs by placing his hand on King’s hip bones. He blew out his breath. “God, you feel amazing,” he whispered and King knew that the only way to channel the overstimulation he was experiencing just then was to kiss Ram. 

He pushed himself up, surprising Ram, who let go of his hips and instinctively wrapped his arms around his back, holding him in place. King leaned forward a little, kissing Ram, moaning when he opened his lips immediately and deepened the kiss. 

“Can I move?” Ram asked when King pulled back for a moment to hug him tightly. 

“Hmm,” King pressed his lips against Ram’s neck, wishing he could stay like this forever. He was running high on adrenaline and serotonin and just being so incredibly in love with Ram and so turned on he wasn’t sure why he hadn’t come the moment Ram had started moving down on him, but he was certain that he had never felt more in his life. 

“P’King?”

“Hmm?”

“Can I move? Talk to me, please.”

King sighed and pulled back a little. “Yes, please move,” he nodded. Ram smiled and kissed him, his tongue dancing along his lower lip for a moment before he pulled away. 

“Can I …” Ram loosened his arms and let go of his back, placing one hand against his chest. 

King let himself drop down on the bed again. 

“Put up your legs a little?” Ram reached around and tapped King’s knees. He did as he was told, surprised to find that he could go even deeper like this. Ram smiled widely and then he carefully pushed himself up again. Just before he slipped out, King lifted his hips to drive back into him and Ram yelped in surprise, his fingers digging into his own thighs. King bit his lip and grinned up at him. 

“Did you like that?”

Ram laughed breathlessly and nodded. 

“Okay,” King lowered his hips again only to push up, still marvelling at how tight Ram felt, but he could move without any greater issue, so he must have been very thorough when preparing himself. Ram’s eyes fluttered closed when he pushed up again. At the next upward push, he let himself fall forward, his hands next to King’s shoulders, his face just inches away from his own. King loved how every time he drove into him, Ram flinched a little. It did not take long for him to start moaning and eventually, Ram’s arms gave out and he dropped down on his chest, breathing heavily. 

King had been so busy focusing on Ram’s reactions that he only realised that he was running out of strength as well, feeling the strain of his movement in his stomach and legs. He carefully lowered his hips again and then wrapped his arms around Ram, kissing his cheek. 

“Now that I think about it, I don’t think I could actually reach you with my mouth,” he mused, letting his hands wander down his back until he could squeeze his arse. Then he reached a little further until he could touch himself and run his index finger along the edge of their connection. When he pressed down a little, wanting to know if he could fit his finger as well, Ram jerked and sank his teeth into his shoulder. 

The pain surprised him and he stopped, slightly worried that he had hurt Ram, but when he nudged him to look at him, Ram simply looked incredibly turned on. 

“I’m sorry,” he apologised anyway and Ram huffed. 

“No, no, this wasn’t … I just didn’t expect you to … I guess I should have. You touch everything all the time and …” he ran out of words and King had to laugh. “I’m sorry I bit you,” Ram smoothed his thumb across the reddening patch of skin. 

King shook his head. “Don’t worry. I won’t develop an irrational fear of you for this.”

“I’m glad,” Ram chuckled and then pushed himself up again. “Okay, I think I have recovered a little. If you want to try anyway, I need to … change my position.”

King nodded. He had expected many things from having sex like this, but taking so much time and teasing each other and talking about it hadn’t really occurred as possible scenarios to him. He realised that he was still trying to get used to the feeling and that any of the imagined scenarios would probably end with him coming before things could get started or him running out of strength entirely. And Ram seemed to be very aware of that, guiding him consciously and unconsciously, giving them both enough time to adjust and just feel for a while before taking things to a higher level. 

When Ram sat up again and then pulled first his left and then his right leg forward so that he wasn’t kneeling any longer, but actually sitting, leaning against King’s raised knees, King realised that maybe, just maybe, from here on in they wouldn’t take another break. 

Ram licked his lips and held out his hand, helping King to sit up. “I’m gonna need some room to move, so if you could sit cross legged, it would make it easier and give you more control.”

King nodded and folded his legs while Ram lifted himself a little, but not allowing him to slip out. When he settled back down on him, he moaned again and King wanted to capture that sound. It was as if it resounded in his groin, manifesting in pure white heat every time he heard it. 

“Okay,” Ram nodded and crossed his own legs behind King. “Don’t overstretch, hmm?”

King smiled and pushed at his chest a little, watching in fascination as he leaned back, using his arms on King’s knees for leverage and then began to move. For a while, all King could do was watch him. The way he looked at him, his eyes narrowed, his lips slightly open, the muscles in his chest and stomach shifting with each thrust and his cock so hard he was almost sure he would come the moment he touched him. 

And yet, wasn’t that the point?

He licked his lips and then leaned forward, trying to ignore the waves of pleasure that Ram drove through him with every roll of his hips. He pushed him back a little further and suddenly Ram shuddered, falling back as his arms gave out again. King half expected him to come, but Ram kept going, using his hands now to cover his mouth, but still moving his hips, increasing the speed of his movement a little. The sounds that escaped Ram made King blush, and he knew he would have a hard time looking at Ram over the next few days at least without immediately remembering what he looked like right then. 

But then he leaned over again and found that he could, in fact, wrap his lips around him. When he did, Ram cried out, one hand leaving his mouth to clasp at the sheets. King smiled and leaned down as far as he could, which meant that he could keep his lips around him while Ram’s movement pushed him down a little further, but never quite pulling out. 

He remembered what Ram had told him about blowjobs, so he made sure that his lips covered his teeth and then he began sucking. 

“P’King!” Ram jerked upwards, a little further than before and King used his hands to keep him in check, but once he started using his tongue on Ram, he could feel him lose control. 

He arched up again, his entire body going taunt, and then he came. King had considered pulling off, but after Ram’s blowjob earlier, he was curious to see what it would feel like to have him come in his mouth. 

For a moment, he was overwhelmed, unable to coordinate his breathing with the warm pulses of come against the back of his throat. So, he decided to just not breathe for the time being and swallow instead – something else that wasn’t easy while his lips were still wrapped around Ram – and only pulled off after he was fairly sure that Ram had finished. He gasped for breath as he straightened up, finding Ram staring at him with wide eyes. 

When he had caught his breath again, he took hold of Ram’s hands and pulled him back up. Ram immediately began kissing him, using King’s shoulders for leverage to start moving again, his soft moans indicating how sensitive he was. 

“Let me …” Ram finally murmured against his neck. “I want you to come inside me.”

King shuddered at his words and then he yelped when Ram pushed him back down onto the bed and began riding him. King was so fascinated by what Ram looked like right then and by how good it felt that he was surprised by his own orgasm. Suddenly he couldn’t quite catch his breath anymore and his body tensed, his hands clasping Ram’s hips tightly, and then Ram stopped moving altogether, breathing heavily as he looked down on him. There was a second when King thought he might be able to hold back, but then his orgasm crashed over him and his hips tried to push upwards, even though he had nowhere to go with the pressure of Ram on top of him. He pressed his eyes closed and just felt. 

When he felt Ram shift a little and finally move off him, grunting when King slipped out, King opened his eyes again. Ram knelt next to him, leaning down to kiss him gently before he carefully pulled the condom off, tied it and then dropped it onto the tissues they had used earlier to wipe their hands. He did the same now and then returned to King, lowering himself down and sucking him into his mouth with a hum. King’s entire body jerked and Ram chuckled around him. 

“Ai’Ning!” King complained, trying to push him off. 

Ram swirled his tongue around his head one last time before he pulled back, pressing a kiss to his hip. 

“Come here,” King demanded and held out his hands. Ram settled in his arms and kissed him gently. 

“Was it good?” he asked, stroking along King’s jawline with his thumb. 

“Fuck, Ram, it was incredible!” he said passionately and Ram inhaled deeply. 

“I’m glad. I wanted it to be good. Also, you are swearing a lot these days.”

King huffed. “Well, you are talking a lot these days,” he shot back, hoping that Ram wouldn’t take it the wrong way. 

And Ram laughed, another happy and carefree laugh that made King feel as if he was bathed in sunlight. 

“Thank you!” he said, knowing that these words didn’t suffice to express how happy he was. 

“I’m going to fall asleep on you,” Ram said quietly. “Is your alarm set?”

“Hmm, yes. Don’t worry. Go to sleep, love.”

Ram sighed and pressed himself a little harder against King who lay awake for quite some time after, marvelling at the fact that Ram had given him a second first time that was just as memorable, if not more so, than their first.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not sure if I will actually finish this in time for Christmas Day. Will try. In any case, the (probably) last two chapters will definitely be up before the end of 2020).  
> Thank you for reading <3


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, I'll be on family time for the next three days, so the final chapter will come a couple of days before the end of the year when I had time to write. I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas - or, if you don't celebrate - a wonderful few days of good food and peace.

King was too excited to sleep, and finally he got up, threw the condom and the tissues away, brushed his teeth, drank some water and got Ram some water as well, just in case he woke up and was thirsty. Then he opened the calendar on his phone and simply put down a heart for the day before double checking that his alarm was, in fact set. 

When he climbed back into bed, he fought the urge to hug Ram tightly and instead just draped himself around his body, kissing the nape of his neck. When he drifted off, he did so with a smile on his face. 

The alarm slowly crept into his awareness, his hand reaching out automatically to switch it off. It was stopped on its way to the night stand. He opened one eye to find Ram sitting on the edge of the bed, disappointingly dressed, but still with his hair down and a coffee mug in his hands. He reached out to switch off the alarm and then turned back to King.

“Morning, P’King,” he smiled and held out the mug to him. 

King rolled onto his back and stretched. He was sore, just as Ram had said, but it felt good, like his body had remembered that certain muscles could actually be used instead of just being tense. He smiled widely at Ram and then sat up, grunting when he realised that his hips and stomach were also quite sore. 

Ram smirked a little before he leaned across to King and kissed him. “Breakfast is ready in ten minutes.” He was about to get up when King reached out for his arm and pulled him back. When he sat back down on the bed, he grunted too, and King realised that Ram would probably carry a memory of last night with him for just as long as he would. 

“How are you feeling?” He asked, just to acknowledge his discomfort. 

Ram huffed. “Like I got laid last night,” he chuckled at King’s surprised expression and then kissed him again. “The kongee is going to burn. I need to check on it.”

“Why are you up already?”

“Will tell you in the kitchen.”

“Fine,” King sighed and then sipped from his coffee. Ram was almost out of the door when he stopped him. “Thank you.”

Ram just nodded and then he was gone. King inhaled deeply and allowed himself a minute of remembering last night. God, the way Ram had looked. The way he had felt, and tasted. Before he had finished his coffee, he was hard, pushing the sheets away to glare at his erection. 

“Wasn’t last night enough for a bit?” he asked it and then he had to laugh, because he was doing what he had thought he would never, ever do. He was addressing his cock. Talking to plants was one thing, talking to body parts, however, … well, he had to draw the line somewhere. 

The thought made him remember Ram’s confession to him and he had to put down the mug on the night stand and bury his face in the pillow, allowing himself a moment of utter, ridiculous happiness. He laughed into the pillow, kicking his legs and wriggling his hips, only to be reminded that he had done a bit of wriggling last night already. 

Growing frustrated with his erection and the many emotions he couldn’t quite channel, he finally got up and walked into the kitchen, stark naked. 

Ram almost dropped the pot he was carrying to the table just then and King had to laugh. “It won’t go away,” he said, pointing at his cock. Ram carefully put the pot down and then he stood, hands on his hips, looking at King as if he was trying to decide what to do with him. 

Then he shrugged. “It will, eventually,” he said, his face entirely blank and King pouted. 

“Breakfast is ready,” Ram said as he poured the kongee into bowls and put the pot back into the sink. “Come eat, before it gets cold.”

“Ai’Ning!” King complained, and for the first time, Ram’s mask slipped. King was secretly pleased to know that he had a secret weapon in the form of his nickname. 

“What do you want me to do?”

“Why are you dressed already. This would be so much easier if you weren’t yet.”

“I already went for a run. I had my shower and …”

“You went for a run?” King gaped. 

Ram smiled. “It was a little … uncomfortable, but it was either running or waking you up.”

King knew his ears had gone red. “And what would you have done if you had decided to wake me up?”

Ram licked his lips. “I am not going to tell you and,” he raised his hand when King inhaled to speak, “I am not going to show you. If I do, we’ll be late.”

“Oh, fuck, Ram, you can just say things like that.”

“Well, that’s why I’m not telling you.”

“Fine. I’ll … put something on.”

King went back into the bedroom and put on the tightest pair of pants he owned. Then he put on a t-shirt that was a slimmer fit than anything else he usually wore and made his way back into the kitchen. He did catch Ram’s glance down his body as he walked up to him, but when he sat down, Ram looked entirely unaffected. King had no idea how he managed that. He was fairly certain that, if he checked now, Ram would be as hard as he was. 

“I made you a playlist,” Ram finally said as he started eating. “It’s likely that we will sing any number of these songs. You won’t have to sing with us, but, just so you know.”

“Oh,” King grinned. “I’ll sing!”

Ram looked at him then, chewing slowly, his eyes bright with happiness. Once again, King understood that Christmas seemed to be a very special occasion for him. 

He smiled at him, stretching out his feet to trap Ram’s ankle between them, and ate. Strangely, once Ram got up to wash the dishes, King felt much less giddy than he had initially, and much more contented. 

“Go, get dressed, P’King, hmm?” Ram asked, looking back at him over his shoulder. 

“Okay,” King got up and, instead of leaving immediately, he hugged Ram from behind, pressing his face between his shoulder and his neck, inhaling deeply. “Thank you for making breakfast. I promise I’ll cook for you, too, one of these days.”

Ram chuckled and turned his head to kiss him. “Okay.”

“I don’t want to go,” King admitted, tightening his grasp a little more.

“Well, I’m going. I thought we could have lunch together?”

“Ugh, since when are you the sensible one of the two of us?” he complained and Ram pushed his arse back a little, making him yelp.

“Always have been,” Ram said drily and King rocked back against him, his muscles reminding him of last nights’ activities and he realised that he wasn’t actually teasing Ram as much as he was making things harder for himself. Just to make sure he wasn’t the only one suffering, he dropped one hand down between Ram’s legs and squeezed.

The moan it elicited from Ram made him weak in the knees. “God, why do you have to be so sexy,” he asked against his neck and Ram chuckled again. 

“Go!”

“Fine,” King let go of Ram and went to get dressed. He changed into a much longer and wider shirt before putting on his uniform jacket, hoping that he could hide any unfortunate accidental erections that might surprise him during the day. But he put on relatively tight jeans, hoping he could keep things in check that way, too. He knew he couldn’t allow himself to think of Ram during classes, otherwise he’d he in trouble, but he also knew that he didn’t really have control over it. 

“Ning?” he asked when he came back out. 

Ram looked at him from where he stood at the desk, packing his backpack. 

“Could you … not text me during the day?”

Ram simply raised a questioning eyebrow and stuffed another book into his bag. 

“Fine. If you text me, I’ll text you back.”

Ram zipped his backpack and looked at King as if he wasn’t entirely sure whether he should deign his words with an answer. 

“I mean,” King sighed. “That if you text me anything … distracting, I will be distracting back.”

“You are easily distracted these days,” Ram remarked and walked past him, grabbing a water bottle out of the fridge. 

King realised that he could only make it worse, so he took his books, pocketed his phone, wallet and keys and walked out of the door, waiting for Ram to follow him. As they walked to the bus stop, they kept bumping into each other, and each time, King felt butterflies in his stomach. He couldn’t look at Ram, knowing he would have to kiss him if he did, but he saw that Ram looked at him repeatedly. 

They almost missed the bus and had to sprint for a few yards to catch it, and Ram took his wrist to pull him along. As they climbed on the bus, Ram grunted, and once they sat down, he winced. “Are you okay?” King asked and the corners of Ram’s mouth deepened in an almost-smile. He nodded. 

“Are you sore?” King wanted to know. 

“A bit,” Ram said, very quietly. “I can still feel you.”

King knew he was blushing scarlet and he looked down, letting his hair fall into his eyes. Ram glanced at him. 

“Also, just … the general workout I got,” he grinned briefly before he schooled his expression. He pulled out his earphones and put on music, and King was left with his own thoughts, desperately trying not to think of Ram riding him, and spectacularly failing. 

He was almost surprised when Ram nudged him. They had reached campus and he hadn’t even realised. Ram gave him a judgemental look, and King realised that he was making it very easy for Ram to laugh at him. But then again, he couldn’t imagine that Ram was unaffected. He was doubtlessly better at hiding it, but he was certain that Ram’s thoughts also circled around last night. 

They found the gang at the usual table in the courtyard of the engineering faculty and Ram stopped King a few feet before they reached the table. “I’ll go to class,” he said quietly and King was at a loss for a moment. He desperately wanted to kiss Ram good bye, or at least hug him, but he knew it was out of the question. 

“See you at lunch?” he asked instead. Ram nodded and then just walked away and all King wanted was to follow him. He knew he was being ridiculous, but, somehow, he had woken up loving Ram even more than before and just the thought of not being right next to him upset him. 

“Oi, King, what’s with the face?” Boss called out to him and he inhaled deeply and made his way over to his friends. 

“I need a Christmas present for him,” he said, hoping that Boss would accept that problem as an explanation for the fact that he had almost started crying right there and then. He inhaled deeply, trying very hard not to immediately text Ram that he was missing him already. 

“A Christmas present? Really?”

“Hmm,” he sat down and buried his head in his hands. 

“Is he giving you a hard time?” Boss asked and King almost laughed out loud. He shook his head, biting his lip to stay quiet. 

“Well, he likes dogs?” Bohn sat down next to him and leaned his elbow on King’s shoulder. “Get him something for his dogs?”

“That’s actually not a bad idea,” King was impressed. He probably should get Ram a present, shouldn’t he? Something he could give him in front of his family. And getting him something for the dogs would probably please Ram’s parents as well. 

“Maybe something that you can keep in your condo until Christmas, so it smells of you. I mean, they know you by now, but then they would know they are from you.”

“How do you know so much about dogs?”

“We used to have two, when I was little.”

“So, a toy or something?”

“Collars?”

“No, I wouldn’t buy anything like that without asking Ram about it. Maybe treats?”

Mek shook his head. “Something to last. You want to impress him, right?”

King grinned. He wasn’t sure he would be able to impress Ram with anything for his dogs. He nodded nevertheless.

Mek smiled. “I just sent you a link.”

King pulled out his phone and saw that Mek had texted him, but there was also a message by Ram. His fingers hovered above his screen for a moment before he opened Mek’s message. He clicked on the link and found several pages of dog toys for large dogs. 

“You could probably get him a ten-pack of tennis balls,” Boss said after looking at the screen of King’s phone and he was suddenly very glad that he hadn’t opened Ram’s message. He looked up at Boss, who undoubtedly expected to be berated for his suggestion, but King nodded. “That’s a good idea, I think. Right, Bohn?”

Bohn nodded, seemingly impressed that Boss had said something sensible for once. 

“Guys, we gotta go, class is starting soon,” Tee got up and they all picked up their bags. 

“Give me a sec. I have to call my sister.” He dialled her number as he watched his friends go. 

“Kumfah? Hi, how are you? I know I promised to visit, but … well, I’ve been busy and. Yes, no, everything is fine. Can I ask you to do me a favour?”

He listened to his sister go on about how she missed him and Ram and how he just had to come by this week at least once, and King agreed to everything she said, checking the time. Two minutes until his class would start. 

“Sis, I’m sorry, I gotta run to class. Could I send you some things to get for me? You can drop them off … tonight or tomorrow. I have to check with Ram. I’ll let you know. I gotta go! Love you!” he hung up and sprinted towards the building. He just made it into the room before the professor closed the door and greeted them.

He managed to concentrate for all of ten minutes before he remembered that Ram had messaged him, so he placed his phone between himself and the table, trying to be inconspicuous and opened the message. 

_“Pay attention in class!”_

King snorted and then pretended that he was coughing. It earned him a dark glance from his professor and an elbow in the ribs from Bohn. 

Once he felt safe again, he typed his answer. 

_“You are going to get me in trouble!”_

And then,

_“Are you sitting comfortably?”_

He tried to hide his grin beneath his hand, but Bohn gave him a telling look. 

He knew he should probably wait until the class was over to read Ram’s answer, but he couldn’t wait that long. 

_“Not as comfortably as on you …”_

He almost dropped his phone and yelped. Hilariously, the professor glared at Boss instead of King and that almost made him laugh out loud. Boss frowned at him and he was grinning back at him when Bohn stole his phone and turned his back towards him so that King couldn’t reach it as he read the conversation. King tried anyway, but he knew he couldn’t pull on Bohn’s arms, otherwise they would all get told off. So, he resigned himself to his fate and simply held out his hand. 

Bohn handed him his phone back, a shit-eating grin on his face. He didn’t say anything, but he didn’t have to. King could tell exactly what he was thinking. 

He put the phone away and tried to follow the class, only half succeeding. He noted down the pages his professor referenced and decided he would just have to catch up on his own afterwards. 

As soon as the class was finished, Bohn threw his arms around him, laughing. King tried to elbow him, but he didn’t have the heart. He had known that this moment would come eventually, so he would just let Bohn tease him and hope that he’d move on to something else soon. 

“Okay, I guess I will have to fight him once again, won’t I?” Bohn grinned.

“What? Why?”

“Well, because he’s distracting you from class! We can’t have that.” Okay, that wasn’t what he had expected. 

“I guess congratulations are in order?” Bohn said loudly enough for Boss and Mek to hear. Boss immediately moved closer to them. “What’s going on?”

“Nothing,” King shook his head. 

“Ha! Okay, so, let me surmise,” Bohn sat on the desk, holding out his hand. “One,” he stretched out one finger. “You were very reluctant to say good bye to him this morning, even though he’s just a couple of rooms away. Two,” he held out two fingers, “he was walking a little funny.”

“He was not!” King protested, but Boss nodded. 

“Yeah, noticed that, too.”

King pushed his hand through his hair, wondering if he should just walk away. 

“Three,” Bohn grinned. “The texts. Well, the texts just prove it.”

“Did he send you nudes?”

“God, Boss! No!”

Bohn slapped his back. “Congratulations. I would have never guessed that you were a top!”

King gaped at his friend. Was _that_ what he was so amused about? 

“Oooh,” Boss’s expression went from amazed to amused and then to impressed. King wanted to shout at them all. At least Mek simply listened without judgement. Tee was still talking to someone by the door, but he would know sooner or later anyway. 

“I …” King tried, realising he could only make it worse. “I might have been a little distracted, yes. But you don’t get to fight him. It’s my own fault.”

“I would have never thought that he’d put out for you like that,” Bohn still seemed entirely caught up on that.

“Oh my god,” King shook his head. “He’s not a bottom or a top. We’re just … trying things.”

“Wait, so you …” Bohn leaned back a little. “What did you do on the weekend?”

King sighed and rubbed his face. “We baked Christmas cookies.”

“Oh,” Bohn seemed disappointed, but Boss seemed delighted. 

“Did you bring any for us?”

“No. They’re for Ram’s family.”

“Did you get invited to their Christmas dinner?” Mek asked, sounding impressed. 

“Well, Ram invited me.”

“Oh, that’s … fast.”

“Oh, they’ve done the whole meet the parents thing already,” Bohn pointed out, but Mek shook his head. “That’s not the same. Christmas dinners are … more.”

“What do you mean?” King asked, growing a little nervous. 

“Well, you bring your partner to a Christmas dinner, as far as I know.”

“So?”

“Not just your boyfriend of a week or two.”

King sighed. “Are you saying this is too soon?” He felt a knot form in his stomach, wondering if he had severely misjudged the situation. He wanted to do Ram a favour, and he wanted to see how they celebrated Christmas, and maybe glare at Ram’s dad a bit, but he hadn’t considered that it might mean much more to Ram. He remembered his nervousness when he had initially asked him. 

“I’m just saying that it’s a fairly big deal.”

“Well,” King remembered the Christmas pudding recipe and felt his ears grow warm. “I guess it is, yes.”

When none of his friends said anything, he looked up at Bohn and found him look honestly surprised. He glanced at Mek, who just nodded solemnly, and then at Boss, who looked slightly uncomfortable. “Does that mean we do get cookies or not?” Mek cuffed him for that and he yelped, and King used the second of turmoil to grab his bag and flee the room. Tee had just been about to come and join them when King passed him. 

He walked all the way to the library, where he leaned against the wall and exhaled. Bohn had seen him panic about Ram possibly leaving his condo, how was he surprised to find that King truly loved Ram?

“P’King? Hello!” Ting Ting stopped in front of him. “What are you doing here?” 

“Hello Ting,” King smiled and pushed himself away from the wall. “I’m trying to escape my friends.”

“Why?”

“Oh, just … how are you?”

Ting Ting narrowed her eyes and cocked her head. “Small talk, really? What’s going on.”

King shook his head. “Nothing. I just need some time alone.”

“Do you want me to call Ram?”

“No!” He held out his hands in protest and she crossed her arms. 

“Why not?”

King closed his eyes for a second. 

“I’ll meet him after the next class anyway. I just need a break now.”

“How is he?”

“Hmm?” King had been ready to defend himself from any further accusations of causing Ram to walk funny, but he had not expected her to ask about him. 

“Happy,” King smiled. “I think. I hope. No. He is.”

Ting Ting’s expression told him that he was right. “You pass the test,” she grinned. “He won’t stop smiling.”

“Wait, you spent the morning with him?”

“Didn’t have a class so I joined his.”

“Why didn’t you say so?”

“Just wanted to check. So, how are you, apart from not in the mood for talking?”

King had to laugh. “Not you, just … the boys.”

“Ah. They realised what happened. Did Boss steal your phone?”

“Bohn.”

“Ram said that probably happened because you didn’t respond.”

King shook his head. “Hey, Ting Ting, do you think getting him something for his dogs might be a good Christmas present?”

“Oh, that’s so sweet. Definitely. They love toys. They kill them, too, with a frightening speed, but they are always so happy.”

“Anything for him, though?”

“You’re his boyfriend.”

“You’re his friend.”

“Ah, you are right. You barely know him,” she grinned. “Honestly, at this point, I think he’s entirely happy.”

“But, like … I don’t know. New gym shoes?”

Ting Ting chuckled. “Give me your line ID and I’ll text you if I can think of anything,” she handed him her phone and he typed in his ID. Then she took it back. “Gotta go and meet Duen. He doesn’t know the news yet.”

“What news?” King asked and then immediately regretted it when she just gave him a wide grin and winked at him as she walked away. 

“Right,” he said to himself. Then he inhaled deeply and dialled Ram’s number. Only when he picked up, he realised that they had never once spoken on the phone before. 

“P’King? Are you okay?”

“Hey Ram,” he leaned back against the wall to steady himself, feeling ridiculous that the simple act of speaking to him and hearing his voice made him weak in the knees. “I’m sorry I didn’t answer, but Bohn stole my phone.”

“I told you to pay attention.”

“Well, you were on your phone as well.”

“But did you? Pay attention?”

“I couldn’t stop thinking about you,” he blurted out and then covered his mouth with his hand, knowing that he had been much louder than intended. When Ram didn’t answer, he was a little worried that he had shocked him. “Ram, are you still there?”

“Hold on a second.”

“What? Ram?” But the phone had already gone silent. He frowned at it, wondering if he had said too much after all. 

He sighed. He should probably get back to class and he should definitely get his act together. He had known that coming back to Uni after getting together with Ram would be different, but the two days last week after the break had been fine. He had been excited to see Ram in the afternoon, but it hadn’t been anywhere near what he felt now. 

He heard the patter of running feet in the hallway behind him and he was just about to raise his voice and tell the running student off when he saw that it was Ram. And then he realised that, as his senior, he needed to tell him off anyway. 

“Nong, stop running. This is a university, not a stadium.”

Ram promptly stopped, breathing heavily, looking at King with laughter in his eyes. “Phi, I apologise,” he said, and King instantly regretted calling Ram out. Hearing him speak while he was gasping for breath was not helping his current situation at all. Ram full on grinned at him now. “Can you tell me where the bathroom is, please?”

“Just …” King sighed and then shook his head. “No. I’ll show you.”

“Thank you, Phi,” Ram said, giving a little bow, and King was ready to call it a day and drag him home. He watched Ram walk, but he couldn’t say that he walked any differently than he usually did, so his friends had probably just imagined it. 

When they entered the bathroom, Ram made sure that they were alone before he returned to the door and placed his food against it, making sure that the door couldn’t be opened without pushing him out of the way. 

“I couldn’t stop thinking about you, too,” he said, still a little breathless, and King finally gave in to his urge to kiss him. He knew they should be quick, but once his lips were on Ram’s, he found that he didn’t really care if they were late to their next classes. 

He pushed his hands into Ram’s hair and deepened the kiss, moaning when Ram’s hands slipped down his back. He stopped at the small of his back and King desperately wanted him to move lower, but he was also grateful that Ram was being sensible enough not to. 

He pulled back and pressed another kiss to Ram’s cheek. “Thank you for coming. I needed this.”

Ram nodded. “Yeah, me, too.”

“Go, I’ll see you in a bit.” He brushed his hair back into place with his fingers before kissing him again. 

Ram smiled and squeezed his hands before he slipped out of the door. When King stepped into the hallway, there was no sign of him anymore. He inhaled deeply and made his way to class as well, ignoring his friends’ looks when he sat down. This time, he left his phone in his bag. He had imagined that the recent kiss would make it even harder for him to concentrate, but apart from a warm buzz in his stomach every time he thought about the fact that Ram had come running to him, probably having learned from Ting where he was, only to kiss him, he found that he was much calmer now. 

Nevertheless, he was glad when the professor had specified their homework and King realised that the next few sessions would concern topics that he had already covered during a summer school intensive course, so preparing for that wouldn’t be too much of a problem, and he would be able to catch up on reading for his morning class. He still felt a little guilty about being so absent-minded and he made half a plan to go to his professor’s office and apologise to him when Bohn took him by the wrist and pulled him outside. 

“Come and have lunch with us,” Bohn said and King stopped in the middle of the hallway, almost causing a minor traffic jam as students hurried towards the cafeteria. “I’m eating with Ram.”

Bohn rolled his eyes. “Then bring him.”

“No!”

“Why not?”

“Because … well, you guys!”

“What, are you afraid we are going to tease him?”

“No, I’m afraid he’ll punch you in the face in case you try.”

“Fair enough. Still.”

“I can ask, but I won’t make any promises.”

He pulled out his phone and called Ram. This time, he didn’t answer. “Sorry, I’ll go and find him. You guys go ahead.”

“Are you running away again? Oi, King!” Bohn called after him as he fought his way through the oncoming students. He just raised his hand to wave before he made his way to their usual table. Ram already sat there, two boxes of takeaway and two cups of iced coffee. King felt a little guilty, considering how consistently Ram fed him and got him coffee. 

“Hey,” he sat down next to him, leaning against him a little, fighting the urge to kiss him.

“Hey, did they let you go?” 

“Barely.”

“Here, eat,” Ram opened the container for him and King smiled down on the assortment of food he had gotten him. “I wasn’t sure what you felt like, so I got you a bit of each,” Ram explained and King pressed his knee against Ram’s leg in thanks. 

“Ning?” he asked after they had eaten in silence for a bit. 

Ram looked at him, and when his eyes flicked to his lips, King couldn’t help but smile. When Ram slowly raised his eyes to look into his, his chin still tugged down, and his expression neutral, his slightly pink ears the only giveaway of his thoughts, King knew that Ram had him in the palm of his hand. He had been affected by the look before, but now he did it in public, at _their_ table, in the full knowledge that King couldn’t do anything about it other than to stare at him.

“Stop trying to kill me!” he complained and squeezed Ram’s leg briefly, making him flinch. “Anyway,” he started after he had recovered a little. “I … I want to get you a present.”

“But did you think of something you want?” Ram asked, frowning a little. 

“Yeah, I did. I’ll tell you about it later. Tomorrow, maybe, Wednesday at the latest.”

“Will there be enough time to get it?” Ram asked, sounding honestly concerned, and King nodded. “Don’t worry.”

“Okay.”

“But, what about you? Is there anything you want for Christmas?”

Ram put down his spoon and looked at King. “I already got you,” he said and then blushed when King’s eyes widened. 

“Can you just stop being adorable for one second and say something like new socks?”

Ram huffed. “No. But anything you give me will make me happy.”

“Honestly, Ram.”

“You are coming to the Christmas dinner, that’s already more than I could wish for.”

“Mek said something about that.”

Ram cocked his head in interest and began eating again. 

“Well, he said that, at least as far as he knows, you only bring people to Christmas dinners that …” Now that he was trying to repeat it to Ram, it seemed almost silly. Of course, he would ask Ram to accompany him to any and all family celebrations from now on. It hadn’t even presented itself as a question. “That you are serious about. Wait, no, that sounded wrong. I don’t mean to question your intentions, at all, I mean, I just … I just wanted to say that maybe I underestimated the … importance of the occasion?”

Ram had watched him, chewing calmly. 

“Mek is right,” he simply answered and turned back to his food. 

“So maybe I should wear a suit?” He mused and Ram grinned down on his food and nodded, almost imperceptibly. 

“You don’t have to wear a tie,” he eventually said and King had to laugh. 

“Honey, if I wear a suit, I will wear a tie!”

Ram looked up in surprise at the endearment and King shook his head, grinning. “Honestly. A suit without a tie. What would your mother say?”

“If you do it well, she will ask you to teach me to tie a tie properly.”

King almost kissed him then, but managed to pull back when he spotted Duen and Ting Ting walk out of the library. He scooted a little away from Ram until they didn’t touch anymore. He was almost glad for the distraction, because it meant that he could concentrate on something other than the soft patch of skin under Ram’s jaw that just begged to be kissed. 

*****

King had one last class while Ram’s were already finished. Usually, he would have asked Ram to wait for him, but he remembered that they still had quite a few things to finish in terms of their baking adventure, so he told him to go ahead and get started on the Christmas pudding and that he would hurry home as quickly as possible.

On the bus back home, he listened to the playlist Ram had created and was surprised to be familiar with almost all of them. He often hadn’t paid attention to the text, but after listening properly now, he believed that he could at least learn some of the lyrics in preparation. If all else failed, he could always search for them on his phone, as long as the melody was familiar. 

Once he came home, he found Ram sitting on the floor in front of the oven, his textbook in his hands while his phone rested on the floor next to him. When King spotted the timer, he realised that the Christmas pudding had been simmering for an hour already. Only a handful more to go, he thought with a grin. 

“Hey,” he leaned down and kissed Ram. Ram smiled and closed the book. 

“Shower?” 

“Shower!”

King helped him up and then pulled him into the bathroom.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I swear this was supposed to only have five chapters, but the boys just refused to stop touching, so ... I guess this will have six chapters after all.

They undressed in record time and even as Ram turned on the water, King attached himself head to toe to his back, simply holding him for a while, relieved that he could finally translate his longing into touch. Ram leaned back against him, taking his hand and pushing it down his body and King was happy to oblige. He was surprised by how quickly Ram came, but once he turned around and returned the favour, he found that as soon as Ram touched him, he was already half there. 

And they kissed as if they were starving for each other. It was ridiculous really, but King was absolutely certain that nothing mattered more than to be able to kiss Ram just then. He came, gasping his name, clinging to him until he felt that he could safely stand on his own two feet again and then continued the kiss. 

Even washing, they barely separated, and when Ram slipped his hand between his buttocks, his index finger pressing down just enough to make King wonder whether he should suggest that they switch roles today, he deepened the kiss, spreading his legs a little. 

Ram shuddered and finally pulled back. “I just want you to get used to the feeling,” he murmured. 

“So, do it,” King dragged his lips along his neck, arching his back a little. 

“Just one finger?”

“Hmm. Yes.”

“Okay.”

Ram poured more shower gel onto his hand and then hugged King tightly. “Tell me to stop if it hurts.”

King nodded and, as soon as Ram increased the pressure, he tensed up. 

“Breathe!”

“Kiss me!” King demanded and Ram did. He wasn’t sure whether he was distracted or whether he felt braver when he was kissed by Ram, but he managed to relax a little more. It felt strange when Ram breached him, but he remembered Ram’s face as he had lowered himself onto him and he told himself that most things felt strange the first time and that, once he got used to the feeling, as Ram has said, he might feel like Ram had. The thought alone made him moan and Ram pushed a little further in. 

“Is that okay?”

“It feels strange,” King admitted. 

“Do you want me to stop?”

“No.” King shook his head. 

“I know it’s not … good, right now.”

“No, it’s … it’s fine.”

“Okay,” Ram nodded and kissed him again. Then he moved his hand a little, twisting his finger and slipping in deeper. 

It was more uncomfortable now, but the thought that it was Ram’s finger that was inside him now made up for that. “How did all of me fit into you?” he asked, breathlessly, and Ram had to chuckle. 

“Don’t worry about that now.”

King exhaled shakily and tried consciously to relax. He remembered Ram’s hands on him last night, kneading his tense muscles and leaving him feeling so unbelievably good. 

“Okay, let me try to move?” Ram asked and King nodded. 

Ram pulled out his finger and pushed it back in, twisting it a little as he went. Then he repeated it and King thought it was slightly easier the second time. The third time felt already familiar and the fourth time, Ram could slip in fairly easily. 

“Okay, that’s enough for today.”

“What? Why?”

Ram smiled and kissed him again. “Because we shouldn’t rush this.”

“There was an angle …” King started when Ram began pulling out, and he stopped moving. “When you fell back. Was it somehow better that way?”

Ram bit his lip and then nodded, slowly. 

“How?”

Ram inhaled deeply before he pulled out his finger. “Turn around.”

King did and Ram tapped his shoulders, so he leaned forward a little, spreading his legs in the hopes of making it easier for Ram. 

“God, I love you,” Ram whispered as he poured more shower gel onto the small of King’s back. Then he dragged his finger through it and slowly pushed back into him. This time, he pressed downwards and once he had slipped in almost all the way, he curled his finger.

King’s legs almost gave out. He wasn’t entirely sure what had happened, but Ram had done something to him that had sent a jolt through him. And he wanted to feel it again. 

He pushed back against him, and Ram chuckled. “You felt that, hmm?” 

“Do it again!” King demanded and Ram obliged. 

This time, he was a little more prepared, but he was still surprised to find that he was growing hard again. 

“Again,” he begged and Ram wrapped his free arm around his chest and pulled him up and against his chest. Once again, his legs buckled under him and King was fairly sure that he could come just from this. 

Ram kissed his neck and King let his hand drop to his cock, starting to stroke himself. 

“Faster,” he demanded when Ram slowed down a little. “Come on!”

Ram inhaled deeply and tightened his grip around King’s chest and then he began to move rhythmically, pressing down every time before pulling out again. 

“Fuck. Is this what it feels like?” King gasped, moving faster. 

“Better,” Ram said quietly, and King couldn’t hold back any longer. He pushed one hand against the tiles to make sure he wouldn’t slump forward, and let his body take over. 

It didn’t take long for him to come again and he was glad that Ram was still holding him up, because his legs shook even after he had come down from his high. Eventually, Ram let go of him to wash him and he simply stood there, letting Ram touch him gently. When Ram wrapped a towel around him and hugged him tightly, he let his head fall forward, resting it against his shoulder. 

“I think I get it now,” he murmured, inhaling deeply. 

“Hmm?”

“Why you looked the way you looked last night. I couldn’t stop thinking about it. About how turned on you were.”

Ram chuckled and tightened his grip for a second before he let go of him again. “We need to finish the cookies today.”

“Are we going to make gingerbread as well?”

“Hmm, the dough is already waiting in the kitchen.”

“I didn’t know you were such a domestic god,” King grinned and began towelling himself dry. 

“I’m not.”

“Yes, you are.”

Ram inhaled deeply. “I only know how to cook about five different dishes.”

“That’s a lie and you know it,” King used the wet towel to slap him and Ram’s eyes narrowed for a second. King fled into the bedroom to get dressed. When he came into the kitchen, he found Ram rolling out the gingerbread dough on the table. 

“Can you melt the chocolate? 30 seconds in the microwave, then you stir and do another twenty?”

“And then I just dip the cookies?”

Ram nodded. 

King got out the box into which he had put the diamond shaped ginger cookies and began dipping them. Ram came to help him after a while. They worked next to each other, silently, and King loved every second of it. 

After they had dipped all the cookies, he dragged his finger along the bottom of the chocolate bowl, realising it was still warm and gooey, but not hot enough to burn, and then smeared it against Ram’s shoulder. 

Ram looked at him, then at his shoulder, and then back at him. King licked his lips and, while Ram was distracted, did it again, wiping the chocolate in a long stripe across his chest. “Should have put on some clothes,” he grinned when Ram’s eyes widened in surprise. 

“Fine,” Ram sighed and spread out his arms. “That’s what you wanted, right?”

King smiled. “Couch?”

Ram shook his head. “No.”

“Please?”

The gingerbread had to wait for a bit while King spent the better part of half an hour making out with Ram on the couch, returning his lips to his chest and arm every once in a while, claiming he could still taste chocolate. Once he felt that he had finally stilled his urge to kiss Ram, and also because they were both getting stubble burn and he knew they should probably shave at some point if they wanted to continue, he climbed off him and returned to the kitchen. 

Hours later, after Ram had done his homework and King had caught up on his reading and revised the content of the morning class, and the gingerbread men had been cut out, baked and decorated, they finally took the Christmas pudding out of the oven. King was impressed by its lovely smell and the way it looked and especially by how pleased Ram was with it. 

“It’s the first one that I made without my parents,” he leaned against King, slipping his hand into his. “Thank you for helping me with all of this.” 

“Is it true?” King asked, feeling his heart in his throat. 

“What?”

“That each member of the family should stir the dough for good luck?”

Ram looked at him, a soft smile on his lips. “Yeah,” he kissed King’s shoulder and then sighed happily. King swallowed hard and then pulled Ram into his arms. 

“I think I’ve memorised your list,” he finally said. “I recognise most of the songs on your playlist, too. I’m not sure about the Russian ones, but the English ones should be fine.”

“We never sing the Russian ones. We might listen to them and there might be vodka.”

King chuckled. “Okay, I’ll need some time to sort out your present.”

Ram nodded and let go of him. “I’ll put everything away.” 

That night, they went to bed relatively early, hugging and kissing for a while before drifting off. King wasn’t entirely sure when he had started to honestly look forward to Christmas, but Ram’s joyful enthusiasm had absolutely infected him. 

*****

When they came back from university the next day, King found that two boxes had been delivered for him. He told Ram not to come into the spare room and opened them. One box held the toys for the dogs, and a net full of tennis-balls that the company had had on sale after all, and he realised that he should probably get a roll of wrapping paper and a card. 

He considered waiting with opening the other box, but finally curiosity won out. He couldn’t help but laugh when he held it out in front of him. It was one of the most ridiculous things he had ever done and it had been a spur-of-the-moment decision, but now that he saw it, he couldn’t regret it. 

He decided to wait for a couple of days until he would show it to Ram and returned it to its box. Ram, meanwhile, had put all the cookies into decorated plastic bags and tied them closed with colourful ribbons. King watched him for a while as he finished his work, a smile on his face, humming quietly. As he saw him now, he almost couldn’t believe that this was the same person who had refused to talk to him the first time he had approached him. 

“Ai’Ning,” he said, just to get his attention. 

“Hmm?” Ram looked up, his smile widening. 

“I know I’m late, but can I help?”

Ram shook his head. “I want to sleep out on the balcony tonight. Will you prepare the bed?”

“Of course!”

That evening they went to bed early again, but they lay awake for a long time, holding each other, King talking quietly as Ram listened to him. 

*****

King’s classes started later than Ram’s on Fridays, so he kissed him goodbye before going out a couple of minutes later to buy wrapping paper and several Christmas cards. One for Ram, one for Ruj, one for King’s parents, which, if he was honest, was for Ram’s mum, and one for the grandparents. He wrapped the presents for the dogs and then sat down to write the cards. 

Before he left, he put the box down on the bed. It was three days until Christmas, and he was starting to get a little nervous about everything. He had gone to see his parents, visited his sister – who had been upset after he told her he had ordered the gifts online and hadn’t needed a favour after all – and had asked her to take him shopping for a suit. She insisted on paying for it, which King couldn’t quite understand, but when she handed him the bags with his new shoes, suit and shirt, there were tears in her eyes. 

“My baby brother is all grown up,” she sniffed.

It wasn’t until she dropped him off at the condo that he realised that she had sounded almost as if he had announced that he would get married and start a family. Once again, he wondered whether he had been missing a vital piece of information, but once he asked Ram again, he assured him that, yes, it was important to him, and yes, you usually only invited someone you were serious about, but that he shouldn’t worry about it. He wanted him by his side and he wanted King to get to know that particular part of his life, but nobody would have any other expectations in him than to show up, eat a lot of food, maybe compliment his mum’s cooking several times and have a drink or two. 

Still, the more time King spent thinking about it, the more he felt like Ram was doing more than to simply take him to his parents for Christmas. It would also be the first time that Ram brought him home when his father was there, which seemed like Ram was ready to forgive him at least on some level. Only a few days that had passed since Ram had been so entirely confused by how saddened his father had been about missing the first time that he had brought King home and King knew that it had been on Ram’s mind, even if he hadn’t talked about it. 

And while he could understand that he desperately wanted a distraction from the entire issue of his father’s cheating, he wondered if Ram wasn’t also doing it to please his father. Well, no matter what happened, King would watch him closely and, in case Ram got hurt again, he would take him home without a second thought. 

He sat in his classes, only half paying attention, scribbling in the margins of his notebook whenever his mind drifted. He had coffee with his friends, texting Ram that he would come home a little later than intended, and then he went to the shopping centre near campus. 

It took him a while until he found what he was looking for. Getting gifts for the dogs was one thing, but he wanted to get him something that would be private. Something that he wouldn’t unwrap in front of his family. 

He texted Ram, asking whether he should get something to eat, but he did not receive an answer. Then he remembered the box on their bed. Suddenly, he couldn’t wait to get home. He picked up some sushi anyway, just in case, and then took the bus home. 

“Ai’Ning, are you home?” he asked as he dropped his wallet and key on the shelf by the door. He didn’t answer, so King looked for him in the kitchen, where he put the sushi into the fridge, checked the bathroom and finally the bedroom. He was nowhere to be found and the box still sat, untouched, on the bed. None of the ACs were turned on and there was no other sign that Ram had come home. 

He checked on the balcony, too, just to make sure, and grew worried when he didn’t find him there either. He tried calling him again but the phone rang out. He tried to tell himself that Ram was fine. That he might be buying presents for his family or prepare something else, but he wondered why he hadn’t told him. 

He called him again as we walked back inside and then nervously up and down the length of his condo. Then he remembered that Ram had told him the night before that he’d go to the gym after uni and King let himself fall onto the couch, feeling like an idiot for worrying so much. After he had gotten over his embarrassment, he texted Ram, apologising for the repeated calls and admitting that he had forgotten that he had told him about the gym, but that, in his defence, Ram had told him after a spectacular orgasm and his brain hadn’t quite functioned yet. 

Then he got up and watered his plants, feeling slightly guilty for neglecting them a little. He chatted to them quietly, leaning in close when he asked whether they found Ram as cute as he did. 

When he heard the door close behind him, he felt blood shoot into his face. He turned around and found Ram leaning against the door, grinning widely. 

“Hey,” King bit his lip, feeling the heat of his renewed embarrassment fight with the heat that rose in him when he let his eyes wander down Ram’s body. He wore the same clothes he had worn on the day he had returned from his grandmother’s.

“You didn’t shower at the gym,” King said, unable to kick his brain into gear and say something sensible.

“I read your text,” Ram smiled and pushed himself away from the door, dropping the gym bag where he stood before he moved closer. “Thank you for worrying about me,” he said and kissed him softly. “I’ll be quick.”

King wanted to join him in the shower, especially since he hadn’t been able to forget how Ram’s finger had made him feel, but he was too excited about Ram being home that he decided to set the table instead. Ram would undoubtedly be hungry after his workout. 

Ram’s hair was still wet when he came into the kitchen, but he had shaved and even put on some cologne. He wore a tank top and his sweat pants, looking too much like he had just walked out of a lifestyle magazine. 

He stopped a few feet from King, raising an eyebrow in question. 

King shook his head, more at himself than in answer to Ram. “You look really good like this. I mean, you always look good, but … just now …” he stopped talking and pointed at the table. “Come eat.”

Ram sat, a smile ghosting across his face when King sat down, too. “Not cute?” he asked, and King hid his face behind his hands. 

“You heard that, hmm?” He asked, feeling slightly better when Ram tucked his left ankle between his and pulled a little. 

“Why are you so shy today?” Ram asked before putting a piece of sake nigiri into his mouth. 

King put down his hands and began eating as well, needing some time to think about Ram’s question. “I don’t know,” he finally admitted. “I think I’m a little nervous about Monday.”

“Don’t be, P’King,” Ram shook his head. “Just be yourself.”

“If I’m myself I’d walk around your house, greeting all of the plants.”

Ram chuckled. “There aren’t that many, so it wouldn’t take you too long.”

King shook his head in wonder even as Ram picked up another piece and ate as if he hadn’t just found yet another way to say _I love you_ to King. 

They ate in silence, Ram watching King while King tried to calm his beating heart. Finally, he couldn’t wait any longer. “My wish arrived. I mean, the wish you asked me to think of and I told you that it would be a couple of days? It’s here.”

Ram cocked his head inquisitively. 

“Well, it’s in the bedroom.”

Ram’s eyes widened with interest and King felt his ears burn again. 

“On the bed,” he almost whispered. He had been so amused by it all that he hadn’t considered that he would actually have to voice his wish to Ram and explain what he wanted him to do. 

Ram stood. They hadn’t finished everything, but King decided that they could eat the leftovers a little later. He quickly put them into a box and placed it in the fridge. Ram waited until he was done before he took his hand and pulled him into the bedroom. 

“Can I open it now?”

“If you want to?” King asked, praying that Ram wouldn’t decide to wait. 

Ram looked at him and then chuckled. “You want me to open it now. You came home late, thinking I’d already found it and you would come home and avoid all of this,” he stated and King sighed and squeezed his hand. 

“Maybe?”

Ram laughed and let go of him, climbing onto the bed where he sat down cross-legged and pulled the box close. Before he opened it, he looked at King for a long moment, as if he was trying to read in his face what he would find in the box. Suddenly, King realised that while he knew exactly what was inside, Ram was still clueless and the options of what he would find inside were infinite. Putting the box on the bed and blushing whenever Ram so much as looked at him probably had Ram wondering what he would find – and suddenly King desperately wanted to know what Ram was thinking. 

Before he could ask, Ram pulled the tape away from the top of the box and opened it. As soon as he could look inside, his face lit up. King had not expected him to recognise it so quickly, but as he pulled out the costume, he began giggling and then immediately held it up against his chest, checking whether it would fit him. 

“This is for me to wear, right?” he asked, beaming at King. 

King nodded. He was entirely baffled by Ram’s reaction. He had been prepared to awkwardly explain to him that he had seen a picture of the sexy-Christmas-elf costume when he had been researching how to get an Elf on the Shelf, but judging from Ram’s reaction, no explanation was necessary. 

Ram put down the green and red satin mini-dress and then pulled out the candy-cane-patterned stockings and a bag with props, such as gloves, a hat, a few bells and laces as well as a black belt with a golden buckle. 

“I love it,” Ram lowered his hands and looked up at King. 

“I wasn’t sure about your shoulders,” King decided to pretend that he wasn’t surprised by Ram’s nonchalant reaction and to just treat this as if nothing extraordinary was going on. 

“Hm, you can lace the back, so that should be okay. Maybe the arms will be too tight, but …”

“Ram?” King couldn’t quite stop himself from asking. 

“Hmm?”

“You _will_ put this on for me?”

Ram smiled widely and nodded. 

“And you are not even a little bit surprised by … well ...” he ran out of words. 

Ram held out his hand and King joined him on the bed. “After you asked me about the Elf on a Shelf, I did check whether they were sold here, you know, to get your sister one. And the third or fourth suggestion was a costume like this. It’s not like I actually considered wearing one, but for a moment it crossed my mind. For you, you know? Because it’s so easy to turn you on and I thought this would be both sexy and funny.”

King rubbed his face against his shoulder. “Yeah, that’s pretty much exactly what I thought.”

“Only you actually bought it,” Ram chuckled. 

“I think I deserve to see you in satin and lace after helping you with the cookies and all.”

Ram snorted and then pulled him in for a kiss. “I think you do, too.”

*****

They decided to wait until the next day for Ram to put the costume on, both because Ram was too tired after his workout and because he wanted to take his time with it, and instead King helped Ram make a list of things to get for his family. He had ordered a couple of computer games for his brother and a novel by her favourite writer for his mother, but he hadn’t been able to even consider a gift for his father and he wanted to get his grandparents something as well. 

After brainstorming a few options with King, Ram decided to put together a mix of Thai spices and easy to carry ingredients to go along with a Thai specialities cook book, and searched for a store where he could buy it all. After he found a well-equipped store, he decided that his father would have to live with a few pounds of good coffee that they also carried. 

They had stayed on the bed, lying next to each other, their shoulders and hips touching and their feet tangled as they both searched on their phones. “Ning?” King nudged him with his elbow and Ram turned to look at him. And suddenly there was absolutely no way that King could have stopped himself from kissing him. So, he did, and Ram dropped his phone and then took King’s and put it down as well before he pushed him onto his back, climbed between his legs and began kissing him in earnest. 

“Yes?” he finally asked, breathless and with tousled hair and a gleam in his eyes. 

“We could go and have our picture taken. Find a nice frame?”

Ram chuckled. 

“What?” King asked.

“I like the idea. But I want one where you look like you did when you chased my dad away.”

King hadn’t realised that Ram had been paying him any attention on that afternoon. 

“I don’t think I can look like that, you know, unprompted.”

“Well, you can’t look like this either,” Ram grinned down on him. “I mean, you could, but that picture would not end up framed at my parents’ house.”

“Why?” King asked, knowing he was playing a little dirty. 

“Because no one gets to see you like this apart from me.”

“Is that so?” he asked, raising his chin challengingly. 

Ram leaned down and very gently bit his chin before he pressed a kiss to it. Then he nodded. 

“We could take one, you know, with our phones?”

Ram reached out to pick up his phone, unlocked it and took a photo of King, all on one swift movement. 

“That’s not what I meant,” King complained, but then Ram put his hand against his cheek and took another photo, looking at the screen intently. “What do you want?” he asked, a little overwhelmed with how serious Ram had grown. 

“Look at me,” Ram demanded and King did, cocking his head a little. 

And then Ram leaned down and kissed him and King forgot about the phone and simply kissed him back. Only when Ram pulled back and looked to the side, King realised that he had taken a video and not just photos. He followed his gaze and looked into the camera, smiling, because he knew that it would make Ram happy. 

When Ram put the phone away, King pushed him onto his back and climbed on top of him, reversing their positions. 

“So, no picture for your parents?”

Ram sighed and shook his head. “Not tonight.”

“Tomorrow then?”

He nodded. 

“Okay.” He leaned down and kissed Ram again, but he could tell that he was ready to fall asleep. “Do you want to sleep outside again?”

Ram nodded again. “I’ll go brush my teeth. You can stay up if you want to.”

“I’ll read a little, I think.” He climbed off Ram and let him go. As soon as Ram was gone, he picked up his phone and opened his photo app. As he watched the video, he felt both self-conscious and increasingly turned on. He had not realised that both of them had moaned softly, and the kiss was extraordinary. He watched Ram’s face when he looked into the camera and he wanted to kiss him again. 

He really needed to learn how to handle being smiled at by Ram without immediately feeling the magnetic pull of his lips. He put the phone back onto the bed and got up, getting himself some mango juice and a bottle of water for Ram. Then he prepared the bed outside, watered his plants there, and settled down to read on his phone. When Ram joined him, he handed him his chap stick and King had to chuckle. “At this point your parents will just be able to tell that we kiss all the time.”

Ram huffed and lay down, sneaking his hand under King’s shirt and stroking his back. 

“Does talking to me exhaust you?” King asked after they had stayed quiet for quite a long time. 

Ram inhaled deeply and turned onto his side, pulling his hand out of King’s shirt and wrapping his arms around his waist instead. “Yes and no.”

King waited for him to explain, but when Ram didn’t say anything else, he put his phone down and gently stroked his hair. Ram hummed contentedly. “It’s just that you have been talking so much this week. But if it tires you out, you can … take a break, you know? Just because we see each other all the time now, it doesn’t mean that … I mean, I love it when you talk to me, but …”

“P’King?”

“Hmm?”

“Don’t worry. It’s not the talking that exhausts me. It’s the trying to find the right words that does. I still think in English sometimes and sometimes I think things and forget to say them and sometimes I think things that I cannot possibly say. So, when I talk to you, I sometimes forget to stop talking. Paying attention to that is exhausting.”

“I thought I was the only one,” King chuckled and began scratching his neck. Ram moaned softly and pressed back a little. 

“You say such beautiful things,” Ram said after a while. “I don’t think you know how much they mean to me. You are the only person I know who is always optimistic. Even when you couldn’t really help me, you still did, just by telling me that things would be alright, and then they were, in a way.”

King exhaled slowly. “I’m glad I could help.” He decided not to talk about the many times he had put his foot into his mouth and hurt Ram, but even thinking about it again upset him a little. 

“Hey,” Ram said and pulled him down on top of him. “I’d much rather have you speak honestly about what you think and feel than trying to hold back.”

King sighed and curled up in his arms, letting Ram hold him for a bit. “You’re just saying that so I don’t hit you again,” he finally said and Ram chuckled. 

*****

King woke up to the sound of rain. Ram lay next to him, still asleep, his fair fanning out across his forehead. The skin around his soft lips was a little reddened still, and King decided that the first thing he needed to do was to shave and moisturize his face. He wanted to wake Ram, but he had been so tired during the last days that he figured he needed any sleep he could get. 

King very carefully climbed across him and then started the coffee machine before heading to the bathroom. As he stood in the shower, he thought about the elf costume, and he began to wonder whether Ram would allow him to make love to him again. He imagined him on top on him, his legs in those stockings and every line and curve of his upper body clearly outlined in green satin. It didn’t take him long to get incredibly turned on, but he decided to draw it out a little and not immediately touch himself. He imagined Ram joining him in the shower, finding him hard and not being surprised in the least. 

The fact that Ram knew what an effect his body had on King and that he had simply told him that he knew made King giddy. It gave Ram power over King and King would happily cede any control. He had already figured out that he could look at King in a certain way and King was utterly helpless in the face of that expression. The knowledge that Ram was entirely aware of it made it all the more alluring. 

He leaned his arm against the tiles and spread his legs a little before reaching around his body to push his index finger inside of him with the help of some shower gel. It felt different to when Ram had done it. Less exciting and less loving. He sighed, realising once again that there was a huge difference between touching himself and being touched by Ram. 

He pushed in a little further, feeling the resistance of his muscles and wondering once again if he was really able to relax enough to let Ram in. He had told him not to worry about it, but he also knew that the more he got used to the feeling, the easier it would get, so he tried to consciously relax around his finger, pushing against the tight muscle, trying to create enough room so that he could easily push his whole finger in and hopefully find what he had learned, after a few red-faced google searches, was his prostate.

Breathing deeply, he pushed further on each exhale, and eventually found that it was getting easier. And then he found the spot, but while he still felt it all the way up his spine, it wasn’t nearly as good as it had felt when Ram had done it to him. Still, he knew it would be enough to make him weak in the knees. 

He leaned his forehead against his arm and began to move his finger, pushing his hips back to meet it, imagining that Ram was behind him. 

A knock startled him enough to almost slip and fall as he jerked back, heat rising to his face with alarming speed. He considered turning on the water, but that would just draw attention to the fact that it had been off. 

“Yes?” he asked, trying to keep his voice steady. God, he had been close. 

“P’King, can I come in?”

King considered saying no, but that would only make it worse, wouldn’t it?

“Yes, of course.”

The door opened and Ram stuck his head in. He looked very tired but also a little embarrassed. “I need to pee.”

King leaned against the tiles, trying to catch his breath. “Sure.”

Ram made a beeline for the loo and only once he stood by the sink, washing his hands, he looked at King through the mirror that had not fogged up, because King had switched off the water a while ago. King could feel it like an electric jolt when Ram’s eyes settled on his erection. 

“Was I interrupting something?” he smirked and turned around. 

“Maybe?” King tried and Ram immediately shucked off his clothes. 

“Want me to interrupt some more?” he asked, crowding him against the wall, looking at his lips for a moment before closing the final gap and kissing him. 

King melted against him. Thinking about Ram touching him and having him actually do it were two entirely different things. Both were great, but the latter was far, far superior, King decided. 

He pushed forward a little, moaning breathlessly when Ram wrapped his hand around him. “Could you, maybe …” he took Ram’s other hand and guided him where he so desperately wanted it. 

Ram looked at him in surprise. “Did you …”

King nodded and then kissed him again, only stopping when Ram pushed into him. This time, he was prepared and he sucked in his breath when Ram easily breached him. When he pressed down, King’s knees buckled and he clutched at Ram’s back, and Ram chuckled. “I love when you do that,” he murmured against King’s neck. “It’s so fucking hot.”

King almost dropped to the floor at his words. Had Ram decided to pay a little less attention to holding back his thoughts?

“Try two fingers?” he gasped, feeling that he was sufficiently turned on and brave to try, and Ram flipped open the shower gel. Then he halted, and finally, he moved back, shaking his head. 

“What’s wrong?” King asked, fearing that Ram had changed his mind. 

“Hold on a second,” Ram turned on the water, washed his hands and then disappeared, leaving the bathroom door open. He came back with the bottle of lube. King exhaled loudly. 

Ram looked at him, the question clear in his eyes, but King shook his head and turned around.

“No,” Ram said. “I want to see your face.”

King turned back around, feeling entirely too much in love with Ram to do anything other than to stare at him lovingly.

Ram nodded and then he squeezed a dollop of lube onto his fingertips. He pulled King against his body again, both of their erections trapped between their bellies, and pressed two fingers against him. King held his breath, waiting for the inevitable pressure that would come, but Ram didn’t push in. Instead, he steadily rubbed in circles until he slipped one finger back inside. King was surprised by how easily he could do that now. 

“Try both?”

“I’m not …”

“I’ll tell you if it hurts. I promise.”

Ram kissed him before he carefully and slowly pushed both of his fingers inside. King gasped and closed his eyes, breathing against the pressure. “More,” he grunted when Ram stopped moving. But Ram pulled his fingers out again and King was about to complain when he slipped them back inside. He did that a couple of times, and King realised that he liked that quite a lot more than he had thought he would. 

He felt his cock twitch when Ram exhaled shakily against his ear and then next time Ram pushed into him, he pressed back. Ram stopped for a moment before he pushed further and then down and King shouted in surprise. 

“Again,” he gasped, holding on tightly to Ram. “Please, Ram, please, please!” 

Ram’s breath was loud in his ear and grew louder when he slipped his other hand between their bodies and took hold of King. “Help me,” Ram moaned and King took Ram’s cock into his hand, loving the sound it elicited. Then he pushed back into him, and King closed his eyes again, overwhelmed with how much he felt. 

When he came, he tried to keep his hands from squeezing too hard, but when Ram spilled across his fingers and stomach, he knew that Ram didn’t mind the pressure. He was a little more worried about his fingernails that had dug into Ram’s shoulder, but he couldn’t quite loosen his grasp yet. 

It took them both a while to calm down again and Ram’s hands shook when he switched on the shower. “Are you okay?” King asked him when he closed his eyes and stood motionless under the spray for a while.

Ram nodded. “I’m okay.”

King waited until Ram was ready to move again and then washed quickly, sticking out his arse so that Ram could wash him, and Ram happily obliged. 

They towelled each other off and then shaved, standing next to each other, wiping condensation from the mirror to be able to see better. King noticed that Ram stopped every now and then, his hands still not entirely steady. Once they were done, he took them both into his own hands and kissed them. 

In answer, Ram hugged him tightly. They stood like this for a long time, surrounded by swirling droplets that still hung heavily in the warm air, holding each other, their hands moving very slowly across each other’s bodies. 

“Do you want to have breakfast?” King finally asked, kissing Ram’s cheek. “Or do you want to try on that costume.”

Ram pulled back, his eyes bright with laughter, but with tears in his eyelashes. King kissed him and then gently wiped his face with his thumbs. 

“Breakfast first.”

“Okay.”

He pulled Ram into the bedroom and watched him get dressed before he put on some clothes as well. If they were sensible, they’d go out and buy the presents Ram wanted to get before delving into their little adventure. 

As they sat in the kitchen, sipping their coffee and eating scrambled eggs on toast, he suggested that they should go out first and Ram nodded. 

*****

King had not expected to feel it when he walked, but each time they stopped and then continued to a different place, he felt a twinge that reminded him that, not so long ago, Ram had two fingers buried deep inside of him. Another side effect of it was that he couldn’t stop grinning. He understood now what Ram had meant when he had told him that he could still feel him and he wondered if he walked funny now and whether people could tell. And he wondered how much more intense it would feel once Ram had made love to him. 

“P’King,” Ram suddenly stood much closer to him than he had expected. “I think I have everything I need.”

King turned his head to look at him and then let his eyes drop to his lips. “Do you, now?” he asked, trying to sound sexy. 

Ram smirked. “Oh, I definitely do. Let’s go home.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, this is another very long chapter XD But here it is, the final chapter of a fic that was supposed to be a one shot haha. 
> 
> Thank you so much for reading <3
> 
> I also might have drawn Ram in that costume - which is a variation of the most ridiculous elf costume I could find online. So, yeah, I am incredibly amused by it all.

When they got home, they stood in the hall, a little undecided about what to do. King knew Ram was ready to shed his clothes and try on the elf costume, but something seemed to hold him back, and King wondered whether it was his own hesitation, which, in turn, was based on Ram’s, or whether there was another reason.

When he walked past him and carried the bags into the kitchen, and then went to wash his hands, Ram inhaled deeply. “Do you want to help me or should I surprise you?”

King turned around to look at him. “I … I don’t know.” Both options were alluring, but he guessed that he would need help with the lacing in the back. Yet, the thought of getting to see him wear it without any preparation made his heart race.

“Okay,” Ram said and walked away and King stared at his back until he disappeared in the bedroom. Then he came out again, carrying the box, and locked himself in the bathroom.

King sat down with a heavily beating heart, only to get up again to start picking up clutter and rearranging some of the flower pots. So far, Ram hadn’t complained about how much space they took up, but he wondered whether he would want to add any decorations to the condo. He would just ask him, later, and let him know that he would be willing to compromise on almost anything. Once again, he found that having Ram stay with him and take up space in his life made him incredibly happy. He wanted Ram to be visible. He wanted to feel his presence, even when he wasn’t at home.

He eyed his plants nervously, wondering if they could feel his intentions. He would just have to get a couple of new shelves that he could fit above the ones he already had, and then he could move them further up and use the space below for other things, like shoes, Ram’s boxing equipment and whatever else they might need space for.

He went to the desk and leafed through the texts he would have to prepare for next week. He would have to flunk his final class, because he wanted to leave with Ram and get ready for the dinner. If he stayed, it would be very tight and he did not want to risk making them late. He probably should have written his professor an email, but he figured he would go and see him in the morning and explain that he had to leave early.

He blew out his breath, walked to the window to look outside, only to change his mind and go back to the bathroom. He knocked. “Do you need any help?” he asked and for a moment, there was no answer. Then he heard the sound of the door being unlocked and Ram opened it just a little, peeking through the slot he had created. “I’ll need five more minutes. Maybe ten, at the most.”

“Are you … doing what I think you are doing?” King asked, fighting the urge to push open the door to see Ram – costumed or not.

Ram simply smirked. “The arms are a bit tight.”

“If you are going to rip the seams just by moving your arms I will faint,” King said passionately and Ram laughed out loud.

“Please don’t fall on your head, in case that happens,” he winked and closed the door again.

King sighed and leaned against the door, feeling glad now that they had waited until Saturday to do this. He was fairly sure the rest of the day would solely concern that silly costume and the effect it had on both of them.

“P’King?” Ram opened the door just an inch and King shot away from the door. He couldn’t believe he had spent ten minutes fantasizing about what Ram would look like and just forgetting to move away from the door.

“Can you … close your eyes? I want to go to the bedroom.”

“Why?”

“You’ll see. Just … not yet?”

“Fine, I’ll go and write some cards.”

“I’ll call you when I’m done,” Ram promised and closed the door again. King sighed and went into the spare room, sat cross-legged on the floor and began writing his card to Ram.

He tried to make it not too cheesy, but ended up signing with _I love you_ , and he realised too late what he had written and he knew he wouldn’t get him a new card because of this. It was true after all, and Ram wouldn’t read the card out loud, would he?

He sighed and then wrote the one to Ram’s parents. He kept it formal and respectful, but he couldn’t help adding a P.S. at the end, thanking Ram’s mum for her hospitality. As he had already thanked them for inviting him to the dinner in the text above, it was obvious that it referred to his first visit to their house.

King addressed his card to Ruj by calling him the _best little brother in the world, probably_ , and then promised him again that he was very serious about his affection for Ram and that he was happy to know that Ruj looked out for him. Then he added that he would have his back, too, in case he ever needed it.

The hardest card to write was the one to Ram’s grandparents, because he had to write it in English. He used his phone to search for phrases he could write, but felt strange writing mere formulas on a card, so he left it. He would ask Ram to translate what he wanted to say and then write it afterwards.

 _“Are you done yet?”_ he texted Ram, leaning against a few boxes.

_“Patience!”_

_“Don’t have all the fun without me!”_ King texted back and then he got up and turned around himself once. He should turn this room into an actual room. It was silly to keep it as a storage room when he used it only to stack a couple of boxes and things he was too lazy to throw out. It didn’t have a window, which was the only downside to it, and so he couldn’t keep any plants in there. But if he invested in a few good lamps, he could keep plants there as well, and maybe make some room elsewhere in his flat? Or he could turn it into a room for Ram to withdraw, if he needed to be alone?

He wasn’t sure whether he would actually need it, so he would ask him before making a decision, but he imagined a large arm chair and Ram curled up in it, listening to music after a long day. Of course he would prefer if he did that on the couch, or the bed, or the balcony, and preferably in his arms, too, but he knew that Ram was very different from him and if he could help him feel more at home, then he would absolutely make it happen.

_“Okay. I’m ready.”_

King inhaled deeply and then exhaled very slowly, trying not to get overwhelmed by the fact that Ram had just agreed to fulfil his fantasy without a second thought.

 _“Coming,”_ he texted back.

When he stood in front of his bedroom door, he felt quite silly for being so nervous. He was fairly sure that imagining Ram wearing the costume and him actually wearing it were two very different pairs of shoes, but just the notion that he had actually gone through with it and put it on for him seemed a little unreal.

He knocked.

Ram opened the door just a little and then walked away. King waited for a few seconds before he pushed it open.

 _Oh god_.

Ram had draped himself across the bed, lying on his side, one hand on his hip while the other cushioned his head. He had put on makeup, just a little, but enough to be visible from where King stood. Eyeliner and glittery eyeshadow and the hint of darker lips, but he couldn’t be entirely sure about that. And he wore the silly elf-hat, too, slightly askance on his head and kept there with a selection of bobby pins.

King let his eyes wander down his body. Apparently, the sleeves of the costume had been too tight after all, and Ram had simply cut them off, but neatly, so it looked like the costume was meant to be sleeveless. And then the expanse of red and green satin stretched tightly across his chest, tightening further on every inhale, culminating in the black belt which pronounced his narrow hips in a way that took King’s breath away. Below, because of the way Ram had cocked his hips, the short skirt seemed even shorter, leaving most of his muscular thighs uncovered. Just above his knee, the candy-cane striped stockings hugged his legs tightly. He couldn’t be sure from where he stood, but it looked like Ram had shaved his legs.

“Fuck,” he simply said, and Ram’s neutral expression wavered a little.

He let go of his hip and reached out his hand towards him. He wore green, fingerless satin gloves while his wrists were encircled by more candy cane striped lacing. King kicked the door closed and walked over to the bed. He could see now that Ram had used three different kinds of eyeshadow – silver, red and a light green. But the eyeliner was even more distracting. King had not thought that Ram would be able to apply it so perfectly, a smooth thin line on each lid, accentuating the beautiful shape of his eyes and making him seem more dangerous at the same time.

King fell to his knees in front of the bed, staring at Ram. “Fuck,” he said again and reached out to drag his thumb along Ram’s bottom lip. The lipstick he wore was just a couple of shades darker that his lips, but it accentuated their curves and softness. “You’re so beautiful,” he whispered.

“Taste it,” Ram said, and caught King’s thumb between his teeth for a second before letting go of him.

King sighed and leaned forward, kissing him gently at first, but when Ram deepened the kiss, he followed suit and tasted mint.

He pulled back and licked his lips, and Ram bit his bottom lip, looking at King in a way that drove a spark of heat down his spine. He gasped and kissed him again, trying to keep his hands from touching him, but finding that he wanted to push the silly hat off his head and bury his hands in his hair.

“Can I take it off?” he asked when they parted, both of them breathing heavily.

“You haven’t even looked properly,” Ram noted, and King realised that Ram had misunderstood him.

“Oh, no, just the hat. I’ll look at the rest properly, don’t worry.”

Ram chuckled and then tipped his head forward. King brushed the hair out of his forehead and kissed it, feeling a little light headed with what the simple trusting gesture did to him. Then he carefully pulled away the bobby pins until he could take off the hat. He put it down on the floor, dropping the bobby pins into it, before pushing his hands into Ram’s hair. Ram’s eyes fluttered closed and for a moment, King just looked at him. He had no idea how the sparkly makeup actually made him look beautiful when it really should have just been tacky, but it wasn’t and he was fairly sure that it wasn’t just him being head over heels in love with Ram that made him feel that way.

He wondered if Ram had dabbled in makeup before and then he remembered the leather pants and the white shirt and he imagined him wearing eyeliner and just the slightest hint of lipstick to a club and he had to kiss him again before he lost his mind.

This time, Ram moved. He reached out to pull on King’s arms until he climbed on the bed and as Ram rolled onto his back, he pulled King on top of him. “Touch me,” he whispered, kissing King’s cheek and then down his neck.

King’s breath caught in his throat and he pushed himself up, looking down Ram’s body. He had to chuckle at the way the skirt was slightly tented between his legs and when Ram followed his gaze, he laughed.

“Come on,” Ram encouraged him and King pushed Ram’s legs apart so he could kneel between them, and then he put his hands on his hips. His hands easily covered the entire span between his hip bones, and King stared down on them, realising he had never noticed how large they were in contrast to Ram’s narrow hips. Suddenly, Ram seemed fragile, though he was anything but.

“P’King!” Ram touched his wrist and King looked up at him. He shook his head at Ram’s questioning expression. Then he pushed one hand up his body, loving how the outline of his abs and pecks was visible through the satin, interrupted only by the pattern of the dress and the red and white ribbon which separated the red from the green satin. The costume really was ridiculous, but so was the fact that Ram was fit enough to actually have cleavage in the low-cut dress. King had to chuckle and then he leaned forward and kissed him right above the edge of the dress, feeling the urge to slip his hand under the satin to squeeze his chest. But there would be time for that.

He moved on to kiss his shoulder, gently biting at his bicep before moving back to his chest. When he pressed an open-mouthed kiss to the outline of his nipple, Ram hissed, and his hands slipped into his hair, holding him down. Well, Ram wouldn’t need to ask twice.

When he stopped teasing him, Ram was breathing heavily and the costume was sporting two dark patches around his nipples. King grinned. “Should I write in the review that stains are very clearly visible?”

Ram chuckled. “It’s satin, what did you expect?”

Suddenly, King wanted Ram to wear satin more often. He made a plan to buy him a couple of shirts, purely for his own enjoyment.

“What are you smiling about?”

“Can’t I just smile because my boyfriend is unbelievably sexy?”

“It wasn’t that kind of smile.”

“Are you saying I have different smiles?”

Ram pushed himself up on his elbows and looked at King as if he couldn’t quite believe he had to interrupt what they were doing to explain things to him.

“Of course, you do. You have a turned-on-smile. And you have an I’m not wearing a shirt-smile, which is different. And you have a whole lot of other smiles as well, but you also have that smile,” he raised his chin to indicate King’s current expression, “and that’s neither the turned-on nor the I’m not wearing a shirt-smile.”

“But I’m usually turned on when you aren’t wearing a shirt.”

“There are gradients.”

“Fine. I just like you in satin, that’s all.”

“No, it’s not.”

King let himself fall forward, making Ram yelp in surprise. When King stretched out his legs, Ram wrapped his legs around his hips. King could feel him very clearly now. He rocked up a little and enjoyed the way Ram’s eyes fluttered closed.

“Would it be alright if I bought you some satin shirts?”

Ram’s eyes flew open again. “To wear at home, I presume?” Ram asked.

King nodded.

Ram huffed. “Of course.”

King smiled and kissed him, only to move back down his body. Ram let his legs fall away and King moved down a little further until he could push up the hem of the skirt. Ram wore his black, tight boxer briefs, but he had folded the legs up so that they didn’t show under the skirt, leaving most of his upper thighs exposed.

“May I … give you a love bite?” he asked, running his index finger across the soft skin of his inner thigh between the edge of his pants and the stocking. Ram shuddered.

“Is that a yes?” King asked and leaned down to kiss along the trace of his finger. The skin under his lips broke out in goosebumps.

A choked “yes” came from Ram and King smiled and sucked his skin between his lips. Ram jerked, a grunt escaping him, but King held on to his leg tightly as he sucked. When he felt that his work would be visible for a couple of days, he kissed down Ram’s leg, chuckling at the pattern of the stocking and finding confirmation for his initial thought. Ram had shaved his legs. He hooked his index fingers into the stocking and pulled, kissing each inch of newly exposed skin.

When he kissed his ankle and then bit down gently just above it, Ram sighed and King looked up, catching him looking down on him with an expression that brought him close to tears all of the sudden. Ram looked _in love_. King wasn’t sure he had ever been on the receiving end of such a look and he had never really expected to be, but the way Ram looked at him then filled his heart to the brim with the certainty that Ram felt as deeply about him as he did about Ram.

He let go of his leg and moved up his body again until he could kiss him. Ram immediately pulled him down and held on to him tightly as they kissed. Finally, King pulled back a little. “I haven’t seen the back yet,” he noted and Ram smirked and nudged his shoulder until King moved off him. Then he rolled over onto his side with his back to King, arching it a little and King swore under his breath.

The costume had definitely not been made for the width of his back, and while the widened front had factored in breasts and therefore almost fit him, the back was clearly meant to be much narrower. Because the lacing wasn’t long enough, Ram had removed and retied it, skipping every other eyelet, but somehow managed to tie a perfect bow on top, directly on top of his back tattoo. Yet, his hips were once again narrow enough to fit the costume perfectly, while his arse was barely covered by the skirt.

King hooked a finger under the lacing and pulled a little. He was almost compelled to pull hard enough for the fabric to split. He inhaled deeply and let go again and carefully untied the bow. Then he pulled out the lacing slowly, pressing kisses to Ram’s back and then his shoulder blades as they were exposed, paying special attention to the tattoo. When he had opened the back entirely, he pushed Ram onto his stomach and straddled his thighs, making him grunt with the pressure of it.

His hands slipped under the skirt and he squeezed Ram’s arse, delighted by the fact that he was allowed to touch him like that. He distinctly remembered the first time he had seen its outline when Ram had raised his arms to paint the poster for the volunteer activity and he had since had ample opportunity to touch it, but he had not yet taken his time concentrating only on his arse.

When he pushed down, Ram moaned and pushed back, deepening the dip of the small of his back and making the muscles in his back stand out more firmly, and King was suddenly incredibly turned on.

“Can I …” he started and then stopped again, not wanting to be presumptuous.

“Hmm?”

“Can I make love to you like this?”

He watched in utter fascination as Ram’s back broke out in goosebumps. He squeezed his arse once again and Ram moaned loudly.

“Ram? Please?”

Ram finally pushed himself up onto his elbows and turned his head to look at him. He looked feverish as he nodded.

“Did you …” King started and Ram continued nodding.

“Oh god,” King said and let himself fall forward, holding himself up on his arms while the rest of his body was attached fully to Ram’s back. They kissed, filthily and wet and when King rolled his hips and Ram pushed back, he doubted that he would have a lot of time to enjoy the position. He’d probably come before he was all the way inside of him.

When he moved off him to get the lube and a condom, his hands were shaking again.

“Fuck,” Ram turned onto his back. “I forgot the lube in the bathroom.”

King laughed and threw a condom at him before he rushed into the bathroom, quite aware of how tight his trousers were. He found the lube and then had a brilliant idea. He pulled off his clothes, almost falling over when he tried to get rid of his trousers and got entangled, and stepped into the shower, turning on only the cold water. He yelped when it hit him and for a few seconds he deeply regretted his decision because the cold water was actually quite painful, but then he took a couple of deep breaths and turned the water off again.

He hadn’t managed to get rid of his erection entirely, but at least he didn’t feel like he would come the second he touched Ram again. He towelled himself off half-heartedly and then went back into the bedroom.

Ram sat on the bed, looking slightly worried. When he saw King, his face lit up immediately. “You showered?”

“Not really. Just cooled off for a second.”

“Come here,” Ram beckoned him closer and once King stopped in front of him, he rolled the condom on him. King was slightly impressed by how natural his movement seemed, and how steady his hands were.

“Where’s the lube?”

King stared down at him, his cheeks burning. “I forgot it in the bathroom,” he admitted sheepishly and Ram laughed, his eyes sparkling.

“Should I go?”

“No, no, I’ll get it!” King protested and went back to fetch the lube. When he caught his own reflection in the mirror, he had to laugh. Walking around his condo with an erection clad in a condom was definitely something that hadn’t featured on his list of things to do when he grew up, but here he was, doing exactly that while his incredibly hot boyfriend was waiting in the bedroom for him to come back and make love to him.

King shook his head at himself and walked back, realising his brain was getting him back into dangerous territory. It didn’t help that Ram lay sprawled on the bed, his head resting on his arm, looking yearningly at him when he walked into the bedroom.

King closed the door behind him and took a deep breath. “Sorry about that.”

Ram simply shifted, pressing his hips down a little, and King knew he was running out of time. He climbed into bed and pushed Ram’s legs apart so he could kneel between them. As he did that, he realised that Ram had taken off his pants.

He had to hold on to the back of Ram’s thighs for a second to steady himself before he put his hands on his hips and pulled him up to his knees. “Is this okay?”

“Yes,” Ram said quietly, but King knew he wasn’t all that collected.

“What do I do?” King asked, even though he had a fairly good idea what to do with the lube.

“You won’t need much,” Ram promised. “Just a little on you and a little on me.”

“Okay,” King exhaled shakily and then squeezed out a dollop of lube that he spread around his head like Ram had shown him the first time. Then he did it again, and slicked up Ram.

“Can I use my finger?”

“Yes,” Ram breathed.

So, he pushed his finger inside and felt Ram tense around him. He remembered doing it on reflex, too, so he waited a little until Ram inhaled deeply and, on his exhale, relaxed. Feeling that he could push in fairly easily suddenly, he did just that. And then he tried to find the spot that had set every single one of his nerve endings on fire.

He knew he had found it when Ram gasped and his hands closed around the sheets. The fact that King knew he had caused this reaction made him feel a little smug. He pulled out again and pushed in two fingers, feeling resistance, but knowing that Ram was much more relaxed than he had been.

“Is this okay, too?” he asked, nevertheless, wanting to make absolutely sure that Ram was comfortable.

“Yes, fuck!” Ram swore when he found the spot again.

And he knew he might screw up and make Ram come, but he couldn’t resist the power of making him feel good exactly like this. So, he pulled his fingers out, almost all the way, before he pushed back in and Ram met him half way, his breath hitching only to rush out of his lungs in a languid moan when he moved back again. King watched him in utter fascination, and then realised that he didn’t need to hold on to Ram’s hips, as he was more than willing to go along with him, so he let go and instead used it to squeeze his arse.

A strangled “fuck” reached him from where Ram had pressed his face into the mattress now and King had to laugh when Ram’s right hand finally tapped the bed as if he was signalling his loss in a wrestling match. He carefully pulled his fingers out and then pressed a kiss to the small of his back just under the belt.

“Okay,” he swallowed. “Do you think you are ready?”

Ram nodded without lifting his face, and King was certain that he meant it, but Ram had made sure to hear his verbal confirmation, so he would wait for that as well.

“Ram?”

“Hmm?”

“Tell me!”

Ram finally pushed himself up on his hands and looked at King, and for a moment, neither of them moved. “Yes, I’m ready, love,” Ram finally said, and King crawled along the bed to kiss him briefly, before he moved back.

It felt less strange and overwhelming than it had the first time, but he was all the more aware of what he was doing and to whom, so that he almost didn’t make it. Only when Ram took hold of his wrist and squeezed, he could breathe again and pulled himself back from his orgasm.

“That was close,” he said quietly when he felt that he could trust his voice again.

“Yes, it was,” Ram admitted and King reached around him, struggling a little to get the skirt out of the way, and took hold of him. Ram’s arms gave out and he fell face first onto the bed again. “Please move!” he begged, his voice muffled.

King took hold of the belt again with one hand, slightly unnerved with how much that excited him, and used the other to hold himself up by Ram’s hip. Then he carefully began to move, trying to find a good angle and finally finding it. He wanted to savour the moment, and the fact that he was getting much more out of his Christmas present than he had imagined he would, but it didn’t take long for him to realise that his body wasn’t going to listen to his brain.

Being able to move without too much strain, he found himself snapping his hips forward faster and faster and with every thrust, Ram moaned.

King knew he wouldn’t last, but he wanted Ram to come first. He wanted to feel him grow tense and shake and then go boneless under him and he felt the need with such an intensity that he realised that, having experienced that once, he would grow addicted to that kind of power.

So, he let go of his hip and the belt and instead draped himself across his back, kissing his shoulder blades and up his spine before sucking another small mark to the back of his shoulder. Using one hand to not put all of his weight onto Ram’s back, he used the other to reach around him again.

“P’King,” Ram lifted his head a little.

“Yes?” he gasped.

“Hold my hand?”

King stopped moving for a second, surprised and moved by Ram’s request. Then he placed his own hand on top of the back of Ram’s and intertwined their fingers.

“Is this okay?” King asked, suddenly unsure if Ram needed something else that he wasn’t aware of.

Ram nodded and raised his chin and King kissed him, slowly, knowing it couldn’t be comfortable for him but trying to make it as good as possible. And then Ram’s other hand wrapped around the wrist of his own and he realised he wanted him to move again, though he did not stop the kiss.

King shifted his weight a little and tried to move his hips and his hand at the same time, all while trying not to break the kiss. And then Ram suddenly began to meet his thrusts and strokes and within seconds, King knew he was losing control.

He came when Ram’s movements became erratic and he broke the kiss, afraid of biting him, pressing his face against his shoulder. He felt Ram spill across his fingers but he continued stroking him until Ram tightened his grip around his wrist and he let go of him. And then Ram pulled his hand away and dropped down flat on the bed. King realised that they would have to change the sheets, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. He still lay on top of Ram, feeling his hammering heart against his own chest, being lifted up a little with each inhale.

“Am I too heavy?” he finally asked when he felt Ram relax under him.

“No. I love this,” Ram sighed. “I really, really love this.”

King kissed his shoulder and squeezed his hand. His mind went back to the volunteer trip and the moment when Ram had admitted to liking the song, but, in hindsight, really, liking him, and how he had so desperately wanted him to mean the latter while being so certain that he didn’t.

He pressed his face against Ram’s back, trying to hold back the tears.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” Ram asked, pushing himself up and therefore King, too. “P’King?”

King swallowed against the tightness in his throat and then moved off him, carefully pulling off the condom. Ram looked worried, but he grinned when King failed to tie it and then moved to pluck a couple of tissues from the box on the nightstand, using one to clean his hand and wrap up the condom. Then he nudged Ram until he rolled onto his back, wiping at his stomach and cock and then the bed before he tried, in vain, to wipe the satin skirt before he balled up the tissue and threw it off the bed.

“Very sexy,” Ram grinned and then pulled King down into his arms.

“Thank you,” King kissed him gently. “For doing this for me.”

Ram huffed. “Oh, I enjoyed this. But it’s probably ruined now.”

“Still. I …” King pushed sweaty and by now slightly glittery hair out of Ram’s forehead. “I didn’t expect this turn of events.”

Ram smiled widely and then hugged him tightly. “Did I meet your expectations?”

King laughed against his neck. “Oh, Ram, you have no idea!”

*****

King was incredibly nervous when he straightened his tie one last time. Ram wasn’t wearing a suit, but he had put on a nice shirt that he had tucked into his dress pants, and King had insisted on taking a photo, because he knew he would be too nervous to really appreciate how good Ram looked, and wanted to make sure to return to it later.

“Ready?” Ram asked, squeezing his hand.

King nodded, even though he felt a little like throwing up.

When the door opened, Ram’s dogs immediately pushed their way past Ram’s mum and, out of reflex, King yelped and hid behind him, almost having dropped the large box he was holding. But then he forced himself to calm down and stepped forward again.

“Hi mom,” Ram smiled. “Merry Christmas!”

The next hours were a blur to King, he shook hands with Ram’s father, received several hugs from Ram’s mother and grandmother, who kissed him on both cheeks before she repeated the same gesture with Ram, only that he got four kisses, got his hands licked by the dogs, was pressed down into a seat next to Ram who immediately took hold of his hand under the table, saw their plum pudding go up in flames, only to realise that this was indeed the way the cake – no – pudding was served, received an astonishing amount of compliments for his and Ram’s baking and finally found himself two hands deep in lobster.

“Why did we eat the cake first?” he asked quietly, and Ram chuckled.

“That’s just my family. Usually, it’s served for dessert.”

“It was very good. Can we do it again next year?”

Ram looked at him then, a small smile on his lips. “Of course.”

They all had too much wine and way too much food and once they all sat together in the living room, a gigantic Christmas tree in one corner of the room and a large table with presents on the side, King realised that he hadn’t even hesitated a single second before slipping his arm around Ram’s waist and pressing a kiss to his cheek.

“Alright, alright. Time for presents, hmm?” Ram’s mum put on music and King grinned when he recognised the song. “Now, since King is our guest of honour today, he will get his present first,” Ram’s mum went to the table with the presents, but King knew that he was blushing fiercely. He had not considered that there would be another present for him and even as he received the wrapped parcel, he could sense Ram grinning at him widely. He elbowed him in the ribs.

When he pulled out a knitted Christmas jumper which featured a selection of carnivorous and creeper plants, as well as snowflakes and Christmas tree baubles, he laughed so hard he had to wipe tears from his face. When he finally stopped laughing and turned to Ram to say thank you, Ram moved in to kiss him very gently on his lips.

King’s eyes went wide. He had not expected Ram, of all people, to kiss him in front of anyone, let alone his family.

“Merry Christmas,” he said quietly and then looked at his mum expectantly, wating for her to hand over more presents. The pile of colourful wrapping paper grew under the coffee table, more drinks were poured, more cookies consumed and finally King had the chance to hand over his presents.

Ruj hugged him after reading his card, and Ram’s mother squeezed his hands after reading theirs after she had passed it on to Ram’s dad, who had been mostly quiet. Ram had helped King with the translation for his grandparents, and they promptly invited King to come to Australia with Ram, if they ever wanted a change of scenery, and King suddenly understood why Ram had gotten so emotional at his own grandmother’s invitation to visit them in the north.

When Ram unwrapped his gift, everyone in the family made cooing noises and King started to understand that they all knew about his fear of dogs. Ram laughed and hugged him tightly before he called the dogs over, causing general chaos as they did not only immediately begin to chew at their toys, but found the wrapping paper and the cookies on the low table of equal interest. In the general chaos, Ram kissed him again, very quickly, and then continued to laugh along with everyone else.

Later, King learned that he was very good at charades and very bad at darts, which he played with Ram’s father and grandfather while Ram was out with the dogs to decompress and get some fresh air and Ruj, Ram’s mum and grandmother sat on the couch with their legs up and gave unconstructive feedback.

It was long after midnight when they climbed into the taxi Ram’s mum had ordered for them.

They waved their goodbyes and then slumped against each other. “Are you alright?” Ram asked, gently rubbing the back of his hand with his thumb.

“It was lovely,” King said earnestly. “You were right, though.”

“Hmm?”

“I was so overprepared.”

Ram looked at him and they burst into giggles.

“I have another gift for you,” King said when the car stopped.

“Oh, do you now?” Ram raised his eyebrow suggestively, and King laughed. They were both clearly too tired to do anything else than to go upstairs, maybe even undress, and fall into bed. If they were lucky, they would make it to their morning classes. But he wanted Ram to have his gift before they slept.

They carried their gifts and the empty cookie containers upstairs, leaving most of it on the kitchen counter to sort through in the morning, before they dragged themselves into the bathroom, brushed their teeth and washed their faces, stripping out of their clothes. Ram insisted that King hang up his suit properly and even brought him the hangers and King knew he would tell his sister about it. He knew she liked Ram and would appreciate it very much.

He went to switch off the lights and ACs in his condo and then produced the small parcel from the spare room. Ram followed him into the bedroom and they sat cross legged on the bed, both barely able to keep their eyes open.

“Merry Christmas, Ning,” King said happily and handed him the parcel.

“Thank you,” Ram said and leaned forward, falling against his lips rather than kissing him. King huffed, but they stayed like this, foreheads pressed together, looking down on the parcel. Ram carefully pulled the string and wrapping paper away and opened the small box.

Ram gasped and pulled away, staring at King with wide eyes.

“What?” King asked, feeling proud that he had surprised Ram.

Ram pulled out the leather necklace with a silver pendant. It was a small, intricate design of a dreamcatcher with a sapphire in its centre. Ram’s left hand immediately went up to touch the top of his ear and King loved that he had realised so quickly what the gem stood for.

“I hope it’s not too …”

Ram shook his head quickly, pressing his index finger against King’s lips. “No! No, P’King, this is perfect,” he said earnestly.

“Thank you for the ugly Christmas jumper.”

Ram laughed and kissed him. “We’re very easy to please, huh?”

King chuckled and put the necklace back into its box before setting it aside. “It’s almost 3 am. We should sleep.”

Even though they were both incredibly tired, they lay awake for a while longer, silently thinking about the day. Finally, Ram turned his head to kiss King’s shoulder. “Thank you for coming with me.”

“Ram?” King rolled onto his side and wrapped an arm around him. “I’ll go wherever you want me to go.”

Ram swallowed audibly and then turned around, pressing his back against King’s chest and pulling his arm more tightly against his body. “Me, too,” he finally said quietly and, with a deep exhale, fell asleep.

*************************************************************************************


End file.
